LAS VEGAS – The journey of the Emirates NBA Cup 2025 initially twisted through 28 cities, made some turns both sharp and unexpected, had some surprises and reached some dead ends. The defending NBA champs did not survive, nor did the current Eastern Conference leader, nor the defending Cup champions.

By how the NBA defines pace, which is a bit of a flawed stat, the Knicks aren’t playing that much faster. They’re still bottom-five in that category. Their secondary assists and passes per game aren’t much improved, if at all.

Victor Wembanyama made a triumphant return from injury to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a stunning NBA Cup semi-final upset of the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday as the New York Knicks downed the Orlando Magic to book their place in the final.

The Thunder had their franchise-best 16-game win streak snapped. After missing the last 12 games with a calf strain, Wembanyama made the most of his limited action with a plus-21 in 21 minutes off the bench.