NEW YORK, N.Y.—The Knicks are officially back in the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 25 years, and on Friday night, New York City erupted accordingly.
Wild celebrations unfolded outside Madison Square Garden following the team’s blowout Game 6 win over the Celtics, with fans climbing buildings and a sea of blue and orange joyfully bouncing through the night.
Numerous social media videos captured the raucous scenes in Midtown, as ESPN New York’s account joked to “call in the National Guard.”
While the scores of fans rejoicing may have not needed to be dealt with by the National Guard, the NYPD deployed a large police presence and set up barricades to manage the huge crowds and keep relative order.
The celebrations felt like something out of Philadelphia following a big Eagles win, as fans scaled lightposts and even 7th Av. billboards, as one video showed.
The good vibes were felt from inside the building too, as New York native and Academy Award nominee Timothée Chalamet signed autographs for kids with the game already well put away.
Not everything about the night was pretty, though — one video showed a fan of the Pacers, the Knicks’ upcoming Eastern Conference Finals opponent, being pelted with trash bags and insults by a mob of New York supporters.
The Knicks will look to avenge last year’s second-round Game 7 loss to the Pacers when the two teams square off in the Conference Finals, beginning Wednesday at 8:00 p.m.