Devoted New York Knicks fans remain undeterred by their team’s recent setback in Game 3 against the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night. Despite the loss, confidence runs high that the beloved Knicks will secure the NBA Finals victory.
The Spurs managed to edge out a narrow victory, defeating the Knicks by just four points in a tense showdown at Madison Square Garden. This victory brought an end to the Knicks’ impressive 13-game winning streak.
However, the defeat hasn’t dampened the spirits of New York supporters, who are hopeful for a series outcome of “Knicks in six.”
“I’ve been a Knicks fan my entire life. I’m saying Knicks in six. We’re going to bring it back home and clinch it at the Garden,” shared John Murray, a 50-year-old fan speaking to The Post outside the iconic venue.
Binicius Santos, a 29-year-old from Brazil and avid Knicks supporter, echoed this optimism while watching the game at a nearby bar. “I’m confident the Knicks are going to win the championship,” he stated. “I think they’ll do it in five, but I’m hoping for six because New York deserves to celebrate a championship at the Garden.”
âI think in five but Iâm hoping six because New York deserves to celebrate the championship in the Garden.â
Another said a loss in the finals was just realistic.
âWe gotta win the next one. The Spurs are a good team, so you gotta expect theyâll win one game,â Greg Armstrong, a 62-year-old New Yorker, said. âIâm not worried. This team has been resilient.â
A pair of friends from Harlem said they donât mind the loss so much since now theyâll have more games to watch.
âIt’s another game,â said Lorenz Gray, a 31-year-old building manager. âRome wasn’t built in a day.â
âWe love basketball,â his pal Avery Banks, 32, added. âWe don’t mind another game.â
But one disappointed spectator plainly stated, âFâk this. That is my reactionâ and pivoted to a âKnicks in sixâ chant.
Some more gumptious fans were chanting âKnicks in five!â outside the Garden after the Spursâ win.
Several of the fans had attended watch parties, which popped up in practically every corner of the five boroughs â including official city-approved viewing events inside Central Park, Bryant Park and Brooklyn Bowl.
The sites were a substitute after the city shot down a proposed bash outside the Garden over security concerns while President Trump attended Game 3. Law enforcement established a five-block security perimeter around the arena ahead of the presidentâs attendance.
Anil Datwani, a 48-year-old man from New Jersey, has been confident the Knicks would emerge victorious, but was âworried about the bad luck from Donald Trump.â
âWe gotta channel that out,â Datwani told The Post ahead of the game.
David Chough, a 32-year-old Manhattanite, was one of the few people who didnât particularly care about the presidentâs attendance.
âAll that matters is the success of the team. Theyâre blocking out all distractions. All that matters is we try to get the W tonight,â he said.
Not everyone was focused on the game, though.
Rowdy fans outside the Bryant Park watch party created chaos, vaulting onto parked cars, taking down street signs and hurling bottles at officers who responded in riot gear.
One daredevil set fire to a Spurs t-shirt, while a mob chased a Spurs fan across the street.
Police had to deploy pepper spray to quell the crowd. At least six people were arrested for disorderly conduct and one for assaulting a police officer.
