The Knicks Courtside Celebrities Are Giving Me Everything I Wanted From the Met Gala

We’re in the middle of a historic moment for New York basketball. At least that’s what I, someone famously uninterested in sports, have gathered from Timothée Chalamet’s passionate pro-Knicks Instagram Stories. I cannot bring myself to care about basketball. But I do care about my Timmy and other stars like him, be they bandwagon fans or not. Suddenly, I’ve found myself a degree more interested in securing vintage Knicks merch on Depop than I was last week.

I understand that the New York Knicks’ successful advancement to the 2025 NBA Eastern Conference Finals represents something major for the team’s lifelong fans, who’ve grown used to them coming up short. An analogy that’s allowed me to understand the gravity of this moment was likening it to how Amy Adams stans will feel the day she wins her long overdue Oscar. Only then did I grasp the maniacal joy that the New York Knicks fans displayed on the streets of Manhattan after a team victory last Friday night.

And while my algorithm knows I have no interest in layups or playoffs or anything of the like, New York City’s team has been unavoidable on my feeds since the Eastern Conference Semifinals began. And not because of any actual game footage. First, it was because of this cinematic picture of Kylie Jenner staring longingly at her boyfriend, Timothée, from their courtside seats during Game 4. Then I couldn’t escape the transparent slay that was Cardi B’s relationship hard-launch (the first post-Offset). She popped out at a Knicks game Monday night with NFL star Stefon Diggs, sitting just a few seats down from Timothée. And that’s just a fraction of the high-profile action that’s gone down during this particular playoff series.

It‘s not new for the Knicks to have a high concentration of celebrities sitting courtside. (Spike Lee has been a season ticket holder since 1985.) The fact that the team is based in a cultural mecca makes it easy for huge names to stop by and watch a game. But this year’s playoff series has set the stage for a ton of non-sports-related pop culture lore to be built on the sidelines. The 2025 Knicks’ playoff presence is more comparable to cultural events like the Met Gala than to well-attended NBA games of the past.

If we’re pitting the annual gala and the Knicks iconic run against one another (not a totally obvious comparison, but let’s walk together), we can note that couples like Kylie/Timothée and Cardi/Stefon chose to make big public outings at Knicks games instead of the Met’s blue carpet this year.

And sure, we see a handful of awkward celeb ex run-ins at the Met every year (see: Sabrina and Barry, and Rosalía and Jeremy Allen White this year). But we don’t get to see how those run-ins—or any other action—can go down inside the event (despite Megan Thee Stallion’s best covert recording efforts). But under Madison Square Garden’s glaring light, we can see the celebrity ex-reunions in their full glory, like Kendall Jenner and Bad Bunny sitting just a few feet away from each other at the Knicks game last Monday night.

Any pop culture fan who considers themself committed to the game of stargazing should be fully rooting for New York City’s team right now. Because players and stats aside, who else is feeding us like this? You’re not getting lovable fan cams of every star imaginable—from Tina Fey to Mary J. Blige—at an Orlando Magic game (respectfully).

You won’t see former besties Kylie Jenner and Jordyn Woods (WAG to Knicks player Karl Anthony Towns) sharing post-Knicks win squeals during a rare public reunion anywhere else. Feels just like 2018.

If you’re a fan that’s been on the internet for a minute, take a moment to remember the joy that those photos of Ethan Hawke trying to chat up Rihanna evoked.

Each of these A-list Knicks moments has provided me with similar voyeuristic glee! A basketball game is no gala, but it’s not often we get so many opportunities to watch these celebs operate in (somewhat) laid-back environments. These games bring us very necessary group chat fodder! (For example: “Is it legal for an L.A. native like Kylie to step out as a Knicks diehard?”)

I am paying close attention to every beat of courtside activity happening while the Knicks do their thing this season, and for that reason alone, I need them to keep winning. Point guard Jalen Brunson is essentially carrying pop culture on his back right now, along with the dutiful Knicks fans in the nosebleeds recording all of this courtside action instead of the game itself (despite how expensive those tickets currently are). Anyone who doesn’t want this celeb tea resource to dry up should go ahead and join the Knicks bandwagon. Who knows what other major pop culture moments are yet to come from Madison Square Garden…

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