There will be no fan zone near New York's Madison Square Garden to watch the NBA finals between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs, NBC News reports. This is due to security measures for US President Donald Trump attending the game.
Madison Square Garden is the home arena of the Knicks. The head of the White House will be in attendance for the game, which will take place at 8:30 pm ET on Monday, June 8th. The New York Police Department, in coordination with the Secret Service, which protects top US officials, announced that, in connection with the President's visit, there will be no viewing near the site.
USSS Special Agent Matt McCool, who heads the department's New York office, said in an interview with The Associated Press (AP) that he understands the possible disappointment of fans. At the same time, the duty of service employees is to ensure “the highest level of public safety,” he clarified.
“Holding outdoor events in the immediate vicinity of Madison Square Garden is not possible due to the security requirements associated with an event of this size and the need to maintain a secure environment for security operations,” McCool said.
Knicks owner and manager James Dolan invited Trump to the match. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said the president would be “welcomed” and this may be the first time a sitting head of state will attend a NBA finals game. He noted that Trump, even before he ran for office, was a big Knicks fan.
On Monday evening, as NBC News clarifies, fans will be able to support their team almost anywhere in the five boroughs of New York, and the site for fans will be located in Bryant Park instead of Madison Square Garden, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said. He will also attend the game.
The Bryant Park event will be free and open to the public, but attendance will be limited to 5,000 people. Fans have been asked to take as little personal belongings as possible – there will be a bag ban in place, as well as a search procedure. Spectators have therefore been urged to arrive at least two hours before kick-off as part of enhanced security measures.
With the Knicks reaching the finals for the first time since 1999 and leading the series 2-0, tickets to their first home game of the round are in high demand, the Associated Press points out. The cost of tickets exceeds the average cost of rent in the largest city in the United States, the news agency clarifies.
“The cheapest upper-tier seats were sold on secondary markets such as StubHub, SeatGeek and VividSeats for more than $6,000. A courtside seat experience would cost more than $75,000,” the AP noted.
The first two games of the series took place in San Antonio, Texas, where the Knicks won with scores of 105:95 and 105:104. The team needs two more wins in the series to become champions. The New York club won this title twice – in 1970 and 1973.
The Spurs are currently five-time NBA champions, winning the title in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014. She reached the finals of the current tournament after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder with a score of 4-3 in a series of seven matches (the score in the decider was 111:103).
