BBNBA Playoffs: De'Aaron Fox and Keldon Johnson are going to the NBA Finals

The stage for the NBA Finals has been set. And it’ll include a trio of former Kentucky Wildcats, too.

Technically, we were going to see a pair of ‘Cats advance no matter who came out on top between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals. It would either be back-to-back MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Cason Wallace looking for a championship repeat with OKC, or De’Aaron Fox and Keldon Johnson making it to their first NBA Finals with the Spurs. The latter won out after stealing Game 7 on the road, 111-103, on Saturday night.

And it was an exciting game. After a classic double-overtime finish in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, these two teams had been trading blowout victories ever since. San Antonio was in control for most of Game 7, but OKC was always within striking distance and even took the lead a couple of times midway through. But the Spurs pulled away late, consistently hitting clutch shots when needed the most. San Antonio is back in the Finals for the first time since 2014.

All four of the UK alums in this game had big moments. Gilgeous-Alexander had his best game of the series, going for 35 points, nine assists, four rebounds, and three steals on 12-21 shooting. His mid-range shot in the second and third quarters was unguardable. After the Spurs did a great job of controlling him throughout this series, the MVP came through in Game 7. But this game was only close for OKC in the fourth quarter because of Wallace.

Wallace finished with 17 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals on 6-10 shooting (5-9 3PT). 14 of his points came in the fourth frame. Every time it looked like the Spurs would blow the game wide open, Wallace came down and knocked in a timely triple. A member of the NBA’s All-Defensive Second Team this season, he epitomizes what it means to be a true 3-and-D player.

On the Spurs side, Fox shook off a poor shooting performance in Game 6 by going for 15 points, five rebounds, and three steals on 6-12 shooting in Game 7. He was crafty on defense while helping ease the pressure off the rest of San Antonio’s backcourt. The ankle injury still appears to be bothering him a bit, but the Spurs are simply better when he’s on the floor.

And then we have Johnson, who was the lowest scorer among all Wildcats with just 11 points to go along with three rebounds, but just like Wallace, he hit huge shots. Johnson, who has seen his role shrink in the playoffs compared to the regular season, knocked in a pair of fourth-quarter triples. The NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year always plays incredibly hard, and he was rewarded for it by the basketball Gods down the stretch of a Game 7.

Keldon Johnson 8 PTS (3-3 FG 2-2 3PT 134% TS) in the 4th quarter vs. OKC

8 quick points in the 4th to help send the Spurs to the 2026 NBA Finals pic.twitter.com/Enh1lt8l2O

— 4th Quarter Performances (@ClutchNBAx) May 31, 2026

Victor Wembanyama was named Western Conference Finals MVP, as expected. He posted 22 points and seven rebounds on 7-15 shooting in 42 minutes. OKC was down a pair of key secondary scorers in Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell due to injury. This series might have gone differently had they been healthy. But they weren’t, and the Thunder just didn’t have enough weapons to pull this one out.

But now we get an NBA Finals matchup that is going to draw a ton of eyes. Wembanyama is the future (and might already be the current) face of the league. He and the Spurs will take on the New York Knicks and their massive market of die-hard fans. Karl-Anthony Towns will be on the opposite side of Fox and Johnson. Regardless, at least one former ‘Cat is going to come out of the Finals as a champion.

It should be an awesome matchup. But while San Antonio is playing in the Finals, OKC will have some tough questions to ask itself this offseason. Game 1 of the Finals is set for Wednesday in Texas.

Stats from OKC-SAS Game 7

Player	Score	PTS	FG (3PT)	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	P/M	MIN
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC)	111-103 L vs. SAS	35	12-21 (2-5)	4	9	3	1	3	-7	43
Cason Wallace (OKC)	111-103 L vs. SAS	17	6-10 (5-9)	7	4	2	1	2	-3	36
De’Aaron Fox (SAS)	111-103 W @ OKC	15	6-12 (3-7)	0	5	3	0	2	3	35
Keldon Johnson (SAS)	111-103 W @ OKC	11	4-8 (2-5)	3	1	1	0	0	6	16