The New York Knicks are bringing the NBA Finals back to Madison Square Garden. That’s a sentence many fans never thought they’d hear again.
For the first time since 1999, the NBA Finals will be played at the World’s Most Famous Arena. Even more incredible, the Knicks will enter Monday night’s Game 3 holding a 2-0 lead over the San Antonio Spurs and sitting just two wins away from their first NBA championship since 1973.
The basketball story is massive. The celebrity story might be even bigger.
Games 1 and 2 in San Antonio already drew an impressive guest list that included Timothée Chalamet, Ben Stiller, Spike Lee, Patrick Ewing, Tracy Morgan, Fat Joe, Chris Tucker, Shaquille O’Neal and Shane Gillis.
Now the series is heading to New York.
If that was the crowd in Texas, imagine what Madison Square Garden could look like.
Here are the 10 celebrities most likely to steal the spotlight Monday night.
10. Chris Tucker
Tucker made the trip to San Antonio and looked like he was enjoying every second of the Finals atmosphere.
The longtime NBA fan has a knack for appearing at major basketball events, and a Knicks Finals game at Madison Square Garden feels too big to miss.
9. Tracy Morgan
Morgan has supported the Knicks through years of disappointment and heartbreak. That’s why his presence would be a hit with fans.
This isn’t a celebrity showing up because it’s trendy. This is a lifelong Knicks fan getting to witness a moment he’s waited decades to see.
8. Fat Joe
Few celebrities are more closely tied to New York sports culture.
Fat Joe was already courtside in San Antonio and knows exactly how important this moment is for the city.
The cameras will find him early and often.
7. Carmelo Anthony
Carmelo never got the Knicks this close.
That’s why seeing him back at Madison Square Garden for the Finals would feel special.
He remains one of the most popular players of the modern Knicks era and would undoubtedly receive a hero’s welcome.
MORE: Karl-Anthony Towns stole the spotlight before Knicks-Spurs Game 2 even started
6. Patrick Ewing
The face of the Knicks’ last Finals team.
Ewing already attended games in San Antonio, and his return to Madison Square Garden for the Finals feels almost inevitable.
If he’s introduced to the crowd before tipoff, expect one of the loudest ovations of the night.
5. Timothée Chalamet
No celebrity has become more associated with this Knicks playoff run.
Every game seems to produce another viral Chalamet reaction.
At this point, some fans are joking he’s become the team’s unofficial mascot.
4. LeBron James
LeBron isn’t playing in these Finals, but his appearance would immediately become one of the night’s biggest stories.
Whenever the NBA’s biggest active superstar shows up, the cameras follow.
If he walks through the tunnel at Madison Square Garden, social media will explode.
3. Ben Stiller
Stiller has become one of the defining faces of the Knicks’ postseason run.
He’s traveled to road games, appeared on broadcasts and embraced every second of this unexpected journey.
A Finals game at Madison Square Garden feels like his moment too.
2. Spike Lee
Nobody represents Knicks fandom more than Spike Lee.
Nobody.
He was there in the 1990s.
He was there through the bad years.
He was there in San Antonio.
And he’ll almost certainly be there when the Finals finally return to New York.
1. Taylor Swift
Imagine the reaction.
The lights dim before introductions.
The cameras begin scanning celebrity row.
Then suddenly they land on Taylor Swift.
Whether she’s with Travis Kelce or not, her appearance would instantly become the biggest non-basketball story of the night.
Every social platform would light up.
Every broadcast would mention it.
Every fan in the arena would notice.
That’s why she takes the top spot.
The real winner may be Madison Square Garden
One thing is already clear. Monday night won’t just be another basketball game. It will be one of the biggest events New York has hosted in years.
The Knicks are two wins away from ending a 53-year championship drought. The NBA Finals are returning to Madison Square Garden for the first time in 27 years.
Former Knicks legends are expected to be in attendance. Celebrities are flying in from across the country.
Even President Donald Trump is expected to attend from a suite, though the extensive security surrounding a presidential visit would make a courtside appearance highly unlikely.
By the time Game 3 tips off, the guest list may be almost as impressive as the players on the floor.
And that’s saying something.
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