Nearly five dozen people were taken into custody Wednesday night, as roughly 10,000 Knicks fans went wild near Madison Square Garden following the team’s historic, last-second Game 4 win over the Spurs, the NYPD says.
The 107-106 victory puts the Knicks just one win away from their first NBA Championship in 53 years. Even non-basketball fans are feeding off the city’s energy.
To New Yorkers’ dismay, the official watch party outside Madison Square Garden was canceled hours before entry was supposed to open Wednesday night. It was the casualty of a very public spat over security between Knicks owner James Dolan and NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
The NYPD heightened security outside the arena — to the level seen when President Donald Trump attended Game 3 earlier this week — after a chaotic Game 3 party outside of Bryant Park.
Dolan accused the city of trying to ruin fans’ celebrations by locking down the area. Mamdani, along with the NYPD commissioner, said safety was their top priority.
Fans gathered as close as they could get to Madison Square Garden anyway, jumping on moving trucks and other vehicles while people were inside them, and at one point trying to flip over a taxi, the NYPD said.
The NYPD said in a statement that the destructiveness worsened as the game progressed.
People were igniting rounds of fireworks in the middle of large crowds, engaging in violent brawls, throwing glass bottles, and climbing on top of traffic lights and light poles in the heart of Midtown.
Crowds allegedly refused many verbal commands to disperse, the NYPD said.
Ultimately, 61 people were taken into custody, and 19 of them were arrested on charges ranging from assault on a police officer to criminal possession of a weapon and reckless endangerment.
Ten NYPD officers were hurt, according to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, including one who was hit in the head with a glass bottle. The department provided no other description of their injuries.
Inside the Knicks watch party in Bryant Park, things were crowded but mostly calm. Outside the viewing area, though, was a different story. Romney Smith reports.
“This is an exciting time for the Knicks and for fans across New York City. The NYPD wants New Yorkers to be able to enjoy these celebrations, but our primary responsibility is to ensure that everyone can do so safely,” the NYPD said in a statement Thursday. “Once again, there were large crowds of people who engaged in incredibly reckless and dangerous behavior last night, both during and after the game. This demonstrates exactly why the NYPD has increased our presence in and around Madison Square Garden.”
The mayhem came two days after chaos overtook the area outside the Knicks watch party at Bryant Park. Fans were brawling in the streets; they were jumping on police cars and hanging from scaffolding.
Roughly 7,000 people amassed in that chaos, the NYPD said.
A total of 21 people were taken into custody in that incident, the NYPD said. Eight of them were arrested and charged, while 13 were released with criminal court summonses. Five cops were injured in that case.
The police union said none of the officers were seriously hurt, suffering some cuts as well as pain and swelling.
During the conference finals in May, the NYPD announced it would not support watch parties outside the arena, citing “very rough” crowds as a public safety threat. But that decision — which ultimately rests with the mayor’s office — was later reversed after the Knicks reached the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999.
