The opening game of the 2025-2026 NBA Finals takes place on Thursday, June 4 in San Antonio and San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle has spoken about his upcoming matchup against New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson.
Brunson won the Eastern Conference Finals Award after starring in the Knicks title win in the Eastern Conference at the expense of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
When matched against Castle, Brunson has converted three of 11 three-point shot attempts per Genius IQ in the lead up to the game and speaking to reporters ahead of the game, Castle highlighted staying disciplined as a key factor when defending Brunson.
“I think what’s worked for me is trying to be physical with him. He’s obviously shorter than me, but he’s a very physical guard, he gets to his spots well. Uses deception well, has great footwork.”
“Trying to be as disciplined as I can, crowd his space, but not give him the angles that he’s looking for. At this point he’s seen pretty much every coverage, been guarded all kinds of ways” Castle said.
San Antonio beat the Knicks in the 1999 NBA Finals series 4-1.
It sounds like guarding Brunson is no easy task. I wonder what specific strategies they’re planning to use.