Blue and orange confetti rained down the Canyon of Heroes on Thursday as hundreds of thousands of fans packed lower Manhattan to celebrate the New York Knicks' first NBA championship in 53 years.
The ticker-tape parade, the first for the franchise since 1973, wound roughly a mile and a half up lower Broadway to City Hall, where Finals MVP Jalen Brunson summed up the day for a roaring crowd.
"Damn, New York, we really did it," Brunson said at the City Hall celebration. "Somehow, someway, I knew we were going to find a way to get this done."
Chants of "Let's go, Knicks!" and "Knicks in five!" — a nod to the five-game Finals win over the San Antonio Spurs — erupted along the route. Fans climbed traffic lights and sanitation trucks for a better view; on the Brooklyn Bridge, far from the floats, people gathered just to hear the loudspeakers.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani, wearing a team jersey under his suit jacket, presented keys to the city to the players, coaches, owners and staff. He told the crowd that fans "waited because we knew deep down in our sick, suffering hearts" the Knicks would someday win again.
The celebration drew the franchise's famous faithful. Director Spike Lee, the Knicks' most recognizable supporter, rode a float alongside Brunson. "I've never been to a parade, ever, and I'm glad it's this one," Lee said. Timothee Chalamet, Ben Stiller, Jon Stewart, Mariska Hargitay and Tracy Morgan joined the party, with longtime broadcaster Mike Breen emceeing the City Hall ceremony.
Karl-Anthony Towns hoisted the Eastern Conference trophy and a cigar atop a parade bus, then carried the championship trophy to a group of children so they could touch it. OG Anunoby, whose tip-in with 1.2 seconds left won Game 4 of the Finals, climbed off his float to greet fans.
The family that helped build the moment soaked it in. Brunson's mother, Sandra, wore a shirt picturing her son and her husband, Rick, a former Knick who is now an assistant on Brown's staff. She echoed her son: "It was all worth it."
Coach Mike Brown, who won a title in his first season in New York after being fired from four previous jobs, turned the spotlight back on the crowd. "This championship is about you guys," he said, urging fans to keep the energy going. Owner James Dolan thanked supporters for waiting more than a half-century.
For some, the day connected eras. Knicks great Walt "Clyde" Frazier, a member of the 1973 championship team, led the parade in a convertible while wearing his title rings, his late teammates and coaches on his mind.
"They would be amazed at what has happened to the Knicks and how they've really captivated the city this year," Frazier said. "This has exceeded any expectations I ever thought that we'd have."
Fans traveled from well beyond the five boroughs. Shareefa Wallace, 34, rose at 3 a.m. to come in from Long Island in a Patrick Ewing jersey. "I had to be here today," she said.
The party will roll on, with the Knicks set to become the first NBA champions to visit the White House under President Donald Trump, but Thursday belonged to the streets of New York, half a century in the making.
