While the Bryant Park watch party stole headlines for its raucous crowd for Game 3 of the NBA Finals, thousands more Knicks fans gathered at Wollman Rink in Central Park to watch Games 3 and 4 of the Finals on Monday and Wednesday night.
The line to get in stretched around the rink and towards the south side entrance on West 59th St. It became the main attraction, with the watch party outside Madison Square Garden canceled once again.
The events included a live DJ, food truck, lockers with merchandise, and a halftime performance by Knicks trumpet player Eganam “ÉGO” Segbefia on Monday.
Former Knicks star Kurt Thomas — a member of the last Finals team in 1999 — was also in attendance.
“The city is on fire, to see the fans supporting the guys, all former players here, we just want to see these guys get across the finish line,” Thomas told amNewYork before Game 3.
Another former Knick and tri-state area native, Al Harrington, spoke to amNewYork prior to Game 4. “This is the best fan base in basketball,” Harrington said. “The people that don’t get a chance to get in the stadium, they’re the realest fans.”
The Knicks came back to Madison Square Garden leading the San Antonio Spurs 2-0 after winning both games on the road. With things shifting to New York, fans couldn’t contain their excitement for the first NBA Finals games in New York City in 27 years.
Along with the second-longest playoff win streak in NBA history at 13 straight games, fans were eager to see the Knicks play at home and inch one step closer to closing the series. The hope was they could do it in four games — and close it out in the World’s Most Famous Arena.
Despite falling to the Spurs 115-111 in another down-to-the-wire finish in Game 3, the Knicks bounced back. They erased a 29-point deficit to defeat the Spurs 107-106 — the largest comeback in NBA Finals history — in Game 4 on Wednesday night to take a commanding 3-1 series lead.
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The watch parties have united Knicks fans around the city and across the country to cheer for their favorite team.
“We are die-hard Knicks fans, and have been for over 50 years,” Jennifer Sands said about her and her sister, Felicia Sands. “I’m up from Florida just for this run, and [Felicia] still lives here. This run means everything to us.”
“It’s uniting the city,” Michael Mendez, a lifelong Knicks fan, said before the game. “It’s energetic. Everywhere you go, there’s a crowd of people happy about the experience.”
Watching their favorite team succeed amongst fellow fans has people ready to end the 53-year championship drought.
“I go back to the mid-80’s,” said Eddy Taveras. “We wanted to see this happen to the new generation. We want them to feel what we felt in the 90’s and 70’s … for the sake of the city, we need this.”
“I’ve been a Knicks fan since ‘94,” Gustavo Mejia added. “It’s a great time to be a New Yorker and a Knicks fan. You’ve gotta be from here to feel it. If you’re not here, you’re not gonna feel it.”
Fans are drawn to this Knicks team because they feel it embodies what it’s like to be a New Yorker. The team’s ability to quiet the noise has resonated in their lives.
“I haven’t been a Knicks fan forever. They’ve been losing since I’ve been a little guy … I’m on the bandwagon,” New Yorker Floyd Floyd explained. “New York was missing this identity for a long time. “We work, we grind, we make ends meet every day. When the clock says zero, we give it our all. That’s what New York is about.”
“The grind, hustle, how they come back, the defense. They’re relentless,” Mejia said. “They’re always getting doubted. They always go against everything. I feel like the Knicks are going against the world.”
The Knicks embodied their city’s mindset in Wednesday’s comeback win. They are now one win away from their first NBA championship since 1973, with a chance to close out the series in San Antonio in Game 5 on Saturday night.
For more on the Knicks, visit AMNY.com
