New York Knicks’ ‘magical’ return to NBA Finals has been a long time coming for New York

NEW YORK – Long-suffering New York Knicks fans woke up on May 26 still buzzing from a night of celebration after their basketball team advanced to an NBA Finals that they will enter as underdogs, regardless of who they face in their bid to end a 53-year title drought.

A sea of blue and orange flooded New York City streets well into the night on May 25 after the Knicks completed a four-game sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers to reach the Finals for the first time since 1999.

Many of the fans carried brooms, which they used to playfully sweep sidewalks and wave in the air during the celebrations. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani poked fun at the Cavaliers on X, writing, “@NYCSanitation I’d like to report a sweep”.

“It’s a magical thing, it’s a historic thing,” Knicks centre Karl-Anthony Towns said after scoring a team-high 19 points in the clinching game in Cleveland. “It’s something New York has been dying for, for a long, long time.

“But for us as players, we understand that the job’s not done.”

After years of struggle, the NBA’s third-most valuable franchise began to turn things around with the arrival of team president Leon Rose, who came on board in March 2020 just as the team were headed towards a seventh consecutive season out of the play-offs.

Rose helped transform the Knicks from a laughing stock into a championship contender. They have missed the post-season only once in the last six seasons and reached the penultimate round of the 2025 play-offs, where they lost in six games to the Indiana Pacers.

Jalen Brunson, who was named the Eastern Conference Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP), has led the way since signing with the Knicks in 2022. The team have built around the point guard, bringing in players such as six-time All-Star Towns.

“Growing up in the (New York) area, I feel like the word ‘hope’ has been gone from the New York Knicks name for a long time,” said Towns. “To be part of this team that revives hope is something special.”

The Knicks playing for the championship sets up an intriguing storyline for the best-of-seven-game NBA Finals. They have not won a title since 1973, and this will be just their third appearance in the Finals since then, having lost in 1994 and 1999.

Despite riding an 11-game winning streak in these play-offs, the Knicks are underdogs heading into a series where they will face either NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and reigning champions the Oklahoma City Thunder, or a San Antonio Spurs team led by French standout Victor Wembanyama.

Their appearance will attract the usual star-studded cast of celebrity fans to the Finals.

Film-maker and lifelong Knicks fan Spike Lee, sporting orange specs, parked himself on the floor to film the team being presented with the Eastern Conference championship trophy on May 25.

Four-time Oscar nominee Timothee Chalamet celebrated with the players and fellow actor Ben Stiller was also in attendance.

From everyday people to Hollywood A-listers, the Knicks will have the support of a city behind them as they try to end their over five-decade title drought.

Meanwhile on May 26, Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points as the Thunder defeated the Spurs 127-114 to move within one win of a return to the NBA Finals.

The victory leaves the champions 3-2 up ahead of Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals on May 28 in San Antonio. AFP, REUTERS