Knicks vs. Spurs | 2025 NBA Emirates Cup Final: Victor Von Doom vs. The Captain
Written by: Varun Sharma
Last Update: Tue Dec 16, 2025, 11:33 am ET
Read Time: 6 minutes
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Happy NBA Cup Day. We're back in Las Vegas for the Cup Final and I couldn't be more excited. Both semi-final games came down to the 4th quarter and both games had some big performances from some big time players.
Let's recap these two semi-final games and then we can get into my favorite prop tonight.
Winners go to Vegas, losers go home.
For additional information on picks, props, money lines and more on today's slate, take a look at our NBA Picks Page or our NBA Odds Page, here.
Game Information
Matchup Information
- Location: T-Mobile Arena; Las Vegas, Nevada
- Date: Tuesday, December 16th, 2025
- Tip-off: 8:30PM EST
Leading Scorers
- New York Knicks: Jalen Brunson: 28.8 PPG | 3.1 RPG | 6.4 APG | 48.7%
- San Antonio Spurs: Victor Wembanyama 25.8 PPG | 12.6 RPG | 3.8 RPG | 50.4%
Betting Odds
Odds via Lucky Rebel, an industry leader in the sports betting world.
Analysis & Breakdown
New York Knickerbockers
The New York Knicks have a chance to win some hardware today and you've gotta think it's something they've got their eyes set on after the way their season ended last year. The Knicks made it to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2000 and it was against the very same Indiana Pacers. The Knicks would lose in six games and Head Coach Tom Thibodeau was shown the door.
New York hired Mike Brown to be the franchises' new Head Coach and now the Knicks lead the Atlantic Division and sit just two games back of first place in the Eastern Conference. The offense is averaging 121.0 points per game (3rd) and the Captain (Jalen Brunson) leads the way with 28.8 points per contest. He's shooting 48.% from the field and and 37.6% from beyond the arc.
New York's also playing at a bottom five pace in the league this year, but it's worked for them. The team's still finds a way to score points and the slowed pace really helps hinder their opponent's offensse. They've held opponents to just 112.2 points per game this year (4th) but they've had a tough time defending the perimeter.
The Knicks rank 16th in opponent 3-point percentage, but 25th in opponent 3s made. The team ranks 24th in wide open 3-point attempts allowed and it's why the Knicks have continued to give up so many 3s.
In their semi-final matchup, we saw the Magic attempt 42 3s, 9 more than their season average; despite shooting 31.0% and being one of the worst 3-point shooting teams in the league. Orlando's took 42 3s, 28 of which were wide to wide open. The Knicks force you to take more 3s, they're just hoping you won't make them.
Victor Von Doom
Victor Wembanyama played 21 minutes in the semi-final against Oklahoma City; he scored 22 points, grabbed 9 rebounds and finished with 3 total stocks. He shot 54.5% from the field and finished the night at a +21. This was Victor's first game since his injury and the team's playing it very cautiously with the Frenchman.
Victor's played in 13 of the team's 25 games this year, making his return from a calf injury just a few nights ago. The team will once again be cautious with Vic's minutes, with Head Coach Mitch Johnson even stating he may use Wemby off the bench once again.
Even with Wemby coming off the bench against the Thunder, it was the Spurs' defense that won them the game. San Antonio held the #2 ranked Thunder offense to just 109 points and a 41.3% field goal percentage. Wembanyama had a huge impact on both sides of the floor, despite playing just 21 minutes.
The Spurs defense has been good this year, but it takes a significant step back when Wembanyama's out of the lineup. Early in the year they sat top five in most defensive categories but now with Wemby having missed almost half their games so far, the defense has regressed. They rank 17th in opponent effective field goal percentage and 25th in opponent 3-point percentage.
They've had a tough time on the perimeter and just like the Knicks, it's because of a higher frequency of wide open shots from deep.
Both teams come into tonight's matchup looking to go home with some hardware. Strap in, because this one's going to be fun.
A look at how Victor Wembanyama makes the geometry of basketball feel different. pic.twitter.com/qt3EMHLTXd
— Todd Whitehead (@CrumpledJumper) December 13, 2025
Tonight's Best Bets
Harrison Barnes o1.5 3s (-135) | Lucky Rebel
The juice on this one is about my absolute limit on eating juice. The price on this one sucks, but it still feels wildly mis-priced. Barnes is coming off, quite possibly the worst shooting night of his career. He went 2/10 from the field, 0/8 from beyond the arc and it was tied for the most 3s he missed in a single game; ever.
Barnes is averaging 31.0 minute per game this year and he's started all 25 games for the Spurs. He's averaging 13.2 points per gam, shooting 47.7% from the field and 41.0% from beyond the arc. The Knicks have no been good at defending the 3-point line and we just saw Barnes go 0/8 against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Barnes leads the Spurs in wide open 3-point attempts per game (3.4/game) and 5 of his 8 attempts against the Thunder were wide to wide open. It was a terrible shooting night and tonight in the Cup Final, I'm expecting that to change. Barnes is due for some positive regression and this Knicks team is the perfect team for it to happen against.
Bonus: Harrison Barnes 3+ 3s (+200) | 4+ 3s (+500)
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