The NBA takes on a political tone every now and then, and now, the New York Knicks have found themselves caught in the midst of verbal warfare. No less than U.S. President Donald Trump has said this week that he “thinks he’ll be going” to an NBA Finals game when the championship series shifts to Madison Square Garden.
Trump, a New York native, went on to say that he was a lifelong Knicks fan. This comment did not sit well with New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who tried to challenge the President’s knowledge of Knicks history.
“I’d ask him to name the starting lineup from the 1993 championship team and see how he does,” Hochul told reporters on Wednesday.
However, Kochul was immediately fact-checked by netizens, who pointed out that it was Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls, and not the Knicks, who won the NBA title in 1993.
This gave Donald Trump Jr. an opportunity to ridicule Kochul and come to his father’s defense.
“Anyone who knows my father knows he probably knows more about Sports than just about any human being not in the business. Kathy’s failed soundbite ain’t gonna land well… just like her policies,” Trump Jr. tweeted.
It’s worth noting that, in 1993, the Patrick Ewing-led Knicks were one of four teams left standing as the two conference finals got underway. Though the Knicks defended their home floor and got off to a 2-0 series lead, the Bulls kicked things into overdrive and pulled off four consecutive victories to book a trip to the Finals.
The last time that the Knicks have won the NBA championship was in 1973, when the team was bannered by Walt Frazier, Willis Reed, Dave DeBusschere, and Bill Bradley. Trump Sr. was 27 then, and Hochul was 15.
“I’d Like to Report a Sweep”: New York City Mayor Gets in on Knicks Craze After ECF Wraps Up
Hochul isn’t the only New York-based political figure who brought up the Knicks this week. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a proud Knicks fan, loudly proclaimed the Knicks’ conquest of the Cleveland Cavaliers after Game 4.
“@NYCSanitation I’d like to report a sweep,” Mamdani tweeted.
The Knicks now await the winner of the Western Conference Finals, which is led by the OKC Thunder 3-2.
