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By Matt Audilet
Contributing Sports Writer
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Luke Kornet was responsible for one of the most pivotal moments of Saturday night's Game 7 matchup between the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder.
With just under seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Kornet was inserted into the lineup to replace Victor Wembanyama, who had just picked up his fifth foul. Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein stole the ball and seemed to have a clear path to the basket, but Kornet erased the would-be dunk with an incredible chase-down block.
Hartenstein's dunk would have cut the Spurs' lead to four. Instead, San Antonio kept its momentum toward an eventual 111-103 victory over the reigning NBA champions.
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Kornet's chase-down block immediately drew comparisons to the iconic "Blocked By James" moment when LeBron James secured victory for the Cleveland Cavaliers with an incredible block on Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals.
"Someone from the bench yelled, 'Who that is? LeBron James?' We’ll see which one has more staying power in the record books of history," Kornet said when asked about the play during his postgame press conference.
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Kornet made the most of his six minutes of action on Saturday night, recording two points, four rebounds and one incredible block. Western Conference Finals MVP Victor Wembanyama led the way for the Spurs, dropping 22 points and seven rebounds as San Antonio punched its ticket to the NBA Finals.
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The Spurs now advance to face off against the New York Knicks.
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