Just hours before tipoff for Game 4 of the NBA Finals, Madison Square Garden cancelled its watch party outside the arena, the mayor and an arena official said Wednesday.
The decision comes a day after Madison Square Garden officials blasted the New York Police Department and Mayor Zohran Mamdani when the city unveiled its security plan, including a vast perimeter and other restrictions, for Game 4, even though U.S. President Donald Trump does not plan to attend.
The owner of the arena and the New York Knicks, James Dolan, blamed Mamdani and the police commissioner throughout his interview with WFAN Sports Radio on Wednesday.
Dolan said the continued restrictions are “designed around stopping people from celebrating around Madison Square Garden,” and would not put up screens as a result.
Mamdani fired back at Dolan on X before Wednesday’s game, saying, “MSG requested a permit for a watch party for 500-999 fans. We approved that permit for 999 fans.”
An NYPD spokesperson echoed Mamdani’s statement, telling CNN that officers set up for the watch party, adding, “you would have to ask MSG why they aren’t following through.”
“Madison Square Garden and the New York Knicks declined to use the permit that was granted by Mayor Mamdani’s office due to the fact that only 1,000 people would be allowed into the area and they would need to be ticketed, leaving the tens of thousands of people who want to come to The Garden to celebrate the Knicks out in the cold,” MSG Sports said in a statement. “We did not think it was fair to just allow a small group to celebrate outside The Garden when everybody else was being shut out.”
Two additional watch parties Wednesday at Central Park’s Wollman Rink and Brooklyn Bowl are listed at capacity, according to an NBA webpage, with walk-ins welcome as space permits. Those watch parties are not ticketed.
This week marks the first time the NBA Finals have returned to New York City in nearly three decades, as the Knicks host the San Antonio Spurs. The Knicks hold a 2-1 lead going into Game 4, scheduled to tip off at 8:30 p.m. ET. Trump went to Game 3 at the Garden, prompting tight security.
Ahead of Game 4, fans lined up outside of the venue as players arrived one by one. Some in the crowd could be heard chanting “MVP” for Karl-Anthony Towns.
The latest dispute over security follows multiple violent incidents tied to Monday’s game, plus a stabbing Sunday at Penn Station — directly under the Garden — that left six people hurt. On Monday night, 21 people were taken into custody at a watch party of roughly 7,000 people in Bryant Park that turned violent and destructive, according to a law enforcement official. Two of those arrested were charged with assaulting a police officer, and five officers were injured, the official said.
Some in the crowd on Monday refused to leave, blocked traffic and engaged in large, physically violent fights that caused injuries, the official added. Others threw glass objects at people and ripped bus signs and trees out of the ground.
Police also arrested an individual outside of the Game 2 watch party on Friday who was in possession of a loaded handgun, according to a law enforcement source.
Separately, a 39-year-old man wearing a Spurs jersey was stomped and punched after Game 3 while walking down West 47th Street, about 15 blocks from the arena. The man was jeered and then attacked by people trying to rip off the jersey, video shows. After trying to defend himself and push people away, the man was taken to the ground from behind and kicked before his cellphone was stolen, according to the NYPD. The victim was hospitalized in stable condition.
Watch parties had been held outside the Garden for every other game in the Knicks’ playoff run except one, which was canceled due to rain, before they stopped during the last round of play against the Cleveland Cavaliers after the NYPD said it would not support the gatherings following crowd problems, an arena official told CNN.
That made the return of the watch party – even under tighter security – as a win for fans, city officials said.
The city’s security plan included crowd-control measures in and around the arena, including a security zone similar to the one implemented Monday, when Trump attended and sat with Dolan. Those restrictions “were supposedly to thwart any threats related to the President’s attendance,” the arena spokesperson said.
“We now know these restrictions were never about the President – it was just a convenient excuse to restrict how and when Knicks fans celebrate,” the spokesperson said Tuesday night in a statement that blasted city officials and the NYPD and called Mamdani and Tisch “New York City’s biggest party poopers.”
Under Wednesday’s security plan, no one would have been allowed inside the secure area starting at 4 p.m. unless they have a ticket to the game or watch party, a train ticket for Penn Station, are going to a business, live in the area, have credentials or have some other authorized reason to be there. The restrictions are essentially the same as those in place Monday for Trump’s visit. Everyone entering the secure area would have been screened.
Mamdani said earlier Wednesday the security measures were in line with those the NYPD uses for gatherings of this size, including July 4th and New Year’s Eve.
For comparison, the last time a Knicks watch party was held outside the Garden – during Friday’s Game 2 played in San Antonio – about 6,500 people attended, an NYPD spokesperson told CNN. There were 26 arrests, including a person who police said punched one officer before biting another.
Under the security plan, bars and restaurants in the security zone would still be accessible, with patrons required to be screened.
Businesses inside the security zone would still be allowed to operate under strict capacity limits.
Broader closures will hurt more than just fans, the Garden spokesperson said.
“The complete closing of areas around MSG is going to affect not only the celebration but also all the small businesses that rely on Garden fans for their livelihood,” the spokesperson said.
Mark Morales, Julianna Bragg, CNN
