The watch party outside of Madison Square Garden may be off, but New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is doing Knicks fans a solid.
Mamdani, a big Knicks fan, announced that the city will host a watch party in Bryant Park in midtown Manhattan for Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs Monday night.
It will be free and open to the public, with a maximum capacity of 5,000 attendees, as Knicks writer Tommy Beer pointed out on X/Twitter. Registration is required.
There will be additional watch parties at Wollman Rink in Central Park and at the Brooklyn Bowl.
The watch party outside of the Garden was canceled in the wake of Donald Trump attending Game 3, where he will sit in a suite. He is favored to be booed at the game, although former Knicks star Amar’e Stoudemire said he should get a standing ovation.
Knicks owner James Dolan is friendly with Trump and invited him to the game. The NYPD and Secret Service then chose to close down the area outside the Garden and set up a security perimeter.
Mamdani plans to attend Game 3 as well, but said he doesn’t plan on chatting with the President.
“If I do see him, I will let him know what I’ve said time and again, which is we’re excited to welcome anyone and everyone who’s rooting for the Knicks,” the Mayor said in an interview with radio station 1010 Wins Friday.
The Mayor added: “I’m paying for my own ticket.”
