{"id":728247,"date":"2026-06-10T21:43:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T21:43:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/728247\/"},"modified":"2026-06-10T21:43:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T21:43:09","slug":"msg-sports-criticizes-nypd-and-mamdani-over-knicks-game-4-security-new-york-knicks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/728247\/","title":{"rendered":"MSG Sports criticizes NYPD and Mamdani over Knicks Game 4 security | New York Knicks"},"content":{"rendered":"

The owner of the New York Knicks basketball team sharply criticized both the New York police department and Zohran Mamdani<\/a> after city officials announced an extensive security strategy for Game 4 of the NBA finals, featuring a large restricted zone and additional access controls.<\/p>\n

The expanded security measures follow Monday\u2019s Game 3 watch party at Bryant Park, where disorder erupted and led to arrests, damage to property and incidents involving assaults on police officers.<\/p>\n

In response to the plans for Wednesday night, Madison Square Garden Sports (MSG Sports), James Dolan\u2019s company that owns the Knicks, issued a strongly worded statement<\/a> titled \u201cMayor Mamdani and Police Commissioner Tisch Are New York City\u2019s Biggest Party Poopers\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe last several victories the Knicks have had have been celebrated by thousands and thousands outside MSG,\u201d the statement said. \u201cThe joy and happiness were palpable everywhere. Apparently, Mayor Mamdani and Police Commissioner [Jessica] Tisch, despite what they say, don\u2019t want to see these celebrations happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

MSG Sports argued that while similar restrictions put in place earlier in the week had been attributed to Donald Trump\u2019s presence<\/a> at Game 3, the decision to maintain the perimeter for Game 4 is evidence that the president\u2019s appearance was \u201ca convenient excuse to restrict how and when Knicks fans celebrate\u201d.<\/p>\n

The sports holding company also claimed that shutting down the surrounding area hurts the atmosphere of the celebration and negatively affects nearby small businesses that depend on game-day crowds.<\/p>\n

NYPD officials told the Athletic<\/a> that MSG\u2019s permit request for Wednesday\u2019s watch party proposed a crowd limit of between 500 and 1,000 attenders. City officials approved attendance up to the maximum of 1,000 people.<\/p>\n

The heightened security measures come after Monday night\u2019s gathering in Bryant Park turned chaotic<\/a> following the Knicks\u2019 defeat. Fans left Bryant Park and moved on to nearby streets, where fights broke out and resulted in 21 arrests. Five police officers were reportedly among those injured.<\/p>\n

Footage shared online showed individuals wearing Spurs apparel being chased and attacked. Several videos gained widespread attention, including one showing a fan\u2019s Victor Wembanyama jersey being ripped off and torn apart<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ahead of game four, Mamdani called on New Yorkers to refrain from targeting Spurs supporters. \u201cWe\u2019re back outside the Garden. We have approved a ticketed MSG watch party for Game 4. More details soon. As we prepare to watch together, let me be clear: this is a historic, joyful moment for our city. We will not allow it to be disrupted by violence.<\/p>\n

\u201cBe safe, take care, and celebrate responsibly. Knicks in 5,\u201d the mayor wrote<\/a> on social media.<\/p>\n

Last week, Mamdani signed a symbolic executive order<\/a> repealing bedtime curfew for NYC\u2019s children during the Knicks\u2019 NBA finals run.<\/p>\n

For Wednesday night\u2019s game, entry into the restricted area will be limited to people with game tickets, train tickets or proof of residence within the area, or those visiting a specific local business. Fans entering the area will use a designated access point at Sixth Avenue and 33rd Street, where all attenders will undergo screening. Trump, a longtime friend of Dolan, is not expected to attend.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The owner of the New York Knicks basketball team sharply criticized both the New York police department and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":728248,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[574],"tags":[64,63,726,85],"class_list":["post-728247","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-basketball","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-basketball","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/728247","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=728247"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/728247\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/728248"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=728247"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=728247"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=728247"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}