Summary
- Knicks fans flooded New York streets Saturday night after the team’s first NBA championship in over 50 years.
- Multiple arrests were made as some celebrations turned rowdy, with fans climbing light poles and crowding intersections around Madison Square Garden.
- The NYPD deployed extensive security following earlier playoff celebrations that resulted in dozens of arrests.
AI-generated summary was reviewed by a CNN editor.
Jubilant Knicks fans flooded the streets of New York on Saturday night, crowding into intersections and climbing light poles and buses as they celebrated the team’s first NBA championship in more than 50 years.
But the celebration turned chaotic as the night wore on, with school buses set ablaze in Times Square, police cars damaged on Sixth Avenue and a 17-year-old boy shot in the foot near the heart of the festivities.
The NYPD said multiple arrests had been made as of early Sunday, noting that details on the number of people detained and the charges they may face would be released later.
A victory parade will be held Thursday, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced. It “will mark the first ticker-tape parade in Knicks history and honor a team that delivered an NBA championship to a city that has waited generations for this moment,” the city said in a news release.
Although the game was played in San Antonio against the Spurs, Knicks fans gathered at watch parties across the city to witness the team battle back in the fourth quarter to clinch the title.
For the fans gathered at a packed watch party outside Madison Square Garden, it was a night of raw emotion, CNN’s Shimon Prokupecz reported. As the Knicks closed out the win, fans erupted in high-fives and chants, Prokupecz said.
“I’m a wreck right now … I knew we would do it,” one fan told CNN in the moments after the final buzzer.
Knicks owner James Dolan had earlier urged fans not to get too rowdy. “We want everybody tonight in New York, be safe, okay? Celebrate, but be safe,” Dolan said at a news conference after the game.
Traffic on the streets around the Garden came to a standstill after the game as the NYPD maintained a heavy presence. The early celebration was largely peaceful as it spilled into the streets around the Garden, with some fans climbing on street signs and jumping on vehicles. In Times Square, chants of “Let’s go Knicks” filled the air.
As celebrations stretched into the night, some in the crowd set off fireworks in Times Square, according to video from Freedom News TV obtained by CNN. Near Madison Square Garden, police officers repeatedly ordered crowds to back up as they detained people and worked to clear the streets.
Around 2 a.m., a 17-year-old boy was shot once in the left foot at 42nd Street and Broadway in Times Square, the NYPD said. Because crowds had blocked streets and prevented an ambulance from reaching the scene, he was transported by police car to Bellevue Hospital, where he was in stable condition. Three persons of interest are in custody and the firearm was recovered at the scene, the NYPD said.
Elsewhere in Times Square, officers moved in after crowds began destroying and setting fire to multiple school buses. At least five buses were destroyed, according to a law enforcement source briefed on the overnight events. Video obtained by CNN showed the buses ablaze as the chaos spread through the area. People in the crowd were also seen rocking the buses back and forth.
On Sixth Avenue, tensions escalated around 2 a.m. after multiple police cars were damaged and their windshields shattered. Bottles and coolers were thrown at officers as more police moved in, Prokupecz reported.
After a small trash fire was set, mounted officers — their horses fitted with protective eye gear — formed a line to push people out of the street as crowd-control units gathered behind them.
Before Saturday night’s game, New York was already acting like a city possessed, with signs of anticipation and excitement impossible to miss.
Metal barricades surrounded Madison Square Garden, and police checkpoints went up around Penn Station as city officials scrambled to prevent a repeat of Wednesday night’s chaos, when dozens of fans were taken into custody after the Knicks’ historic comeback.
With the World Cup unfolding just across the Hudson River and a sold-out 5 Seconds of Summer concert inside Madison Square Garden, New York’s streets were a swirl of colors and loyalties. Supporters of Brazil and Morocco mingled with Knicks faithful in a rare collision of two of the world’s biggest sporting events and everything else a Saturday night brings to the city.
Thousands of sports fans flooded into the area near Madison Square Garden early, turning one of the most heavily trafficked areas into a bustling sea of yellow, red, orange and blue as they raced to clinch the best seats inside a barricaded area for Saturday’s watch party.
Soccer fans headed to the first World Cup game in New Jersey moved through the crowds in their jerseys, while others donned Knicks gear and posed in front of the basketball mecca.
When the Knicks win, the city transforms. Car horns become percussion instruments and fire escapes become grandstands. “Empire State of Mind,” “New York, New York” and “Juicy” pour from speakers, open apartment windows and subway cars, and even the most nonchalant of New Yorkers erupt into chants.
Saturday’s chaos echoed earlier playoff celebrations that had already drawn scrutiny to the city’s handling of large crowds.
Ecstasy quickly gave way to chaos after Game 4 on Wednesday night. Thousands of fans flooded the streets surrounding Madison Square Garden, some climbing traffic lights, scaffolding and construction cranes, while others jumped on moving vehicles. Videos showed fans standing atop taxis, hanging from structures and surging through intersections.
The NYPD said 56 people were taken into custody following Game 4, 15 of whom were arrested. Ten officers were injured. Fans shut down traffic, attempted to overturn a taxi, ignited fireworks in dense crowds, damaged multiple NYPD vehicles, threw bottles and other objects, engaged in fights and climbed onto buildings, light poles and construction equipment, police said.
Knicks fans run on NYC streets after championship win
Knicks fans run on NYC streets after championship win
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Crowds around the Garden swelled past 10,000 people Wednesday night. The scenes recalled a Bryant Park watch-party gathering of roughly 7,000 people during Game 2 that turned violent and destructive, according to a law enforcement official.
On Monday night, a 39-year-old man wearing a Spurs jersey was stomped and punched after Game 3 while walking down West 47th Street, about 15 blocks from the arena. The man was jeered and then attacked by people who tried to rip off the jersey, video showed. After trying to defend himself and push people away, the man was taken to the ground from behind and kicked before his cellphone was stolen, the NYPD said. He was hospitalized in stable condition.
Knicks fans celebrate in Times Square
Knicks fans celebrate in Times Square
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Madison Square Garden canceled its official Game 4 watch party amid a public dispute with city officials over security restrictions. The move came after MSG executives sharply criticized the NYPD and Mamdani over the city’s security plan, which included a large perimeter and additional crowd-control measures around the arena.
Dolan argued the restrictions were “designed around stopping people from celebrating around Madison Square Garden” and said the arena would not install outdoor screens for Game 4 as a result. Mamdani fired back at Dolan on X before Wednesday’s game, writing, “MSG requested a permit for a watch party for 500-999 fans. We approved that permit for 999 fans.”
The NYPD said the day after Game 4 that the violent behavior “demonstrates exactly why” the department increased its presence around Madison Square Garden.
This story has been updated with additional information.
