Hour 1: Tim Legler

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The Stanley Cup Final on ABC is more than a quest for the cup. It's 134 years of putting it all on the line and the heaviest 35 pounds ever lifted. It's broken curses and broken hearts. But for those chasing it, it's everything. The only question is, who will take it? You just have to watch The Stanley Cup Final presented by Geico on ABC and the ESPN app.

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This is The Michael Kay Show podcast.

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**Michael Kay** (0:41)
And a good afternoon, everybody. This is indeed The Michael Kay Show. We thank you for joining us on this Monday, June 8th, 2026, me and you for two. Those are the rules of engagement. It's the fastest two hours in the Sports Talk Radio and you know how you can get in, right? You can be a co-host. We have the membership number 1-800-919-3776.
Knicks Spurs Game 3 tonight at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks are up two games to nothing. Now a stat that's been flying out there is that no team has ever won the first two games on the road of an NBA Finals and lost. Now that would get me all goosebumpy that there were like 10 or 11 teams that have done it. There were two. The bigger stat to me is that you win overwhelmingly when you win the first two games of a best of seven NBA Finals. That's the big deal. But let me be to keep strong. Well, nobody's ever lost the first two games at home and come back to win. It's only happened twice. So there's not really a lot of a background to like bet your life on. But I said this on Friday on the show. If the Knicks win on Friday, they will kick the Spurs teeth in and the series will be over. And I believe that. I still believe that. The Spurs have been humbled. The Spurs have been exposed for the things that they can't do. Wemby has been exposed for the things that he can not do.
But do I think this is going to happen in four games? Listen, my initial pick was six.
I can't even imagine a team that won 60 games in the regular season would get swept. Now the Spurs are good. They're young, but they're good. And they had an open look at the end of game two, and Wemby Nyama did not hit the shot. Otherwise, the narrative is completely different coming into tonight's game. I don't see a way that the Spurs win four of the next five games. But I can see a way that the Knicks could end up clinching this in game six at Madison Square Garden rather than game four at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday. Now all bets would be off if the Knicks won tonight. Then I think the Spurs just pack it in and give up. But when you're talking to your Spurs, if you're Mitch Johnson, if you're if you're Greg Popovich, you have to take one game at a time. You can't think too big. I've heard that so many times through my life covering sports. You can't think we've got to win four games and five. You got to win tonight. And then you got to win on Wednesday. So if the Knicks take one of the two games at Madison Square Garden, it's a no doubter. Now, I was listening to Chris Carlin on Barton Carlin and Dan Gross was filling in for Bart. And he said the odds are better for the Spurs winning in seven than the Knicks winning in five. Now, it's very, very close. But the fact that Vegas still does not believe in this Knicks team is beyond me. The Knicks have won 13 straight games. And also, let's really get to the crux of the matter. The Knicks have won the first two games of the series. And Jalen Brunson has shot 19 of 56 from the field. Now, in game one, he had 30 points. But 13 of them were in the fourth quarter when they needed him. In game two, he had 20 points. And then he hit the free throw. That ended up being the difference in the game. But he has not been great. Cat's been great. How do you spell MVP? K-A-T.
For the first two games of the series, Cat's been the man. He slowed down Wemba Nyama. And he scored when he needed to score. Pulls down rebounds when he needs to pull down rebounds. All of that. Now, anybody out there, do we believe that Jalen Brunson is going to continue to play this way? That Jalen Brunson is going to continue to shoot almost 30% from the field, something like that, 33% from the field? I don't think so. But there is something that is telling.