Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg got a little too close to the action at the NBA Finals on Monday night.
The billionaire founder of Bloomberg L.P, 84, was sat courtside at Madison Square Garden as the San Antonio Spurs won 115-111 to claw their way back into the series, which now stands at 2-1 in favor of the Knicks.
But Bloomberg got more than he bargained for during the fourth quarter when he ended up with a Knicks player on top of him.
Jose Alvarado dived into the crowd in an attempt to keep the ball in play. As he did so he flung himself over Bloomberg and struck the former mayor in the head with his torso.
Fortunately, the 84-year-old was unharmed and took it well. There was a spare seat next to him at the time so Alvarado took a moment to sit down and check Bloomberg was ok.
Bloomberg wasn’t the only political powerhouse in attendance at Game 3 as Donald Trump took his seat in a VIP box and was brutally booed by the thousands of Knicks fans watching on. Current New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani was also present.
Knicks guard Jose Alvarado crashed into Michael Bloomberg during the NBA Finals on Monday
Bloomberg, circled, was courtside when Alvarado ran towards him to try and keep the ball in
Alvarado leapt into the crowd and his torso seemed to hit Bloomberg before he checked on him
Bloomberg (left) was sat next to Yankees and Giants legends Derek Jeter and Eli Manning
Trump, who later denied the jeering happened, and his granddaughter Kai smirked through a chorus of brutal boos during the national anthem.
The president shut down large swathes of Manhattan ahead of his arrival, with a steel ring erected around the famous arena and watch parties canceled in anticipation of his arrival in the Big Apple.
Many slammed the president as ‘selfish’ for deciding to attend New York’s big homecoming night, and fans made their feelings clear ahead of the game when he was shown on the jumbotron inside MSG.
Not to be outdone by Trump, the celebrity Knicks fans were out in full force for one of the most anticipated nights of sports in the history of New York.
Timothee Chalamet returned to take his courtside seat, dressed in an orange suit and sunglasses for the game against San Antonio Spurs. He did not have girlfriend Kylie Jenner with him for the big night, however, after taking her with him to Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals in Cleveland last month.
Ben Stiller was there too, with his wife Christine Taylor – he was sat next to Chalamet when the game started. Earlier this year, Stiller hit out at Trump for using clips of his Tropic Thunder movie in a montage promoting America’s war against Iran.
Stiller wrote on X: ‘Hey White House, please remove the Tropic Thunder clip. We never gave you permission and have no interest in being a part of your propaganda machine. War is not a movie.’
Larry David, the Curb Your Enthusiasm creator who is another long-standing Trump critic, also had one of the best seats in the house for Game 3 of the Finals.
Donald Trump and his granddaughter Kai smirked as boos rang around MSG on Monday
The president was given a brutal welcome by Knicks fans ahead of Game 3 of the NBA Finals
Timothee Chalamet was courtside for Spurs vs Knicks without girlfriend Kylie Jenner
Ben Stiller had one of the best seats in the house on a huge night for New York sports
Other notable names included Jay Z, John McEnroe, Jason Bateman, Fat Joe, DJ Khaled, ex-Giants quarterback Eli Manning and Yankees baseball legend Derek Jeter.
Meanwhile, an NBA Finals watch party in Manhattan descended into violent chaos as fans brawled and police deployed pepper spray in a desperate attempt to disperse the crowds.
Mamdani announced a short-notice big-screen viewing at Bryant Park after the visit of Trump forced the cancelation of a previously-planned event outside the arena itself.
5,000 free tickets were dished out to Knicks fans to watch Game 3 of the NBA Finals, but scenes turned ugly midway through the night, leading to riot police being deployed.
It is understood the violent scenes unfolded on the streets outside the viewing party, and clips posted on social media saw huge crowds of Knicks fans brawling.
In one video, published by Freedom News TV, two men can be seen swinging punches at each other while being cheered on by a large group, before others jump in and join in with the violence.
Others are filming the fight, and at one point a man swings around a large tree branch, before a man dressed as a superhero tries to break up the violence.
Later in the clip, a long line of NYPD officers are deployed to restore order in the crowd, and one can be seen firing pepper spray towards the crowds, shoving away particularly rowdy fans.
The unsavory scenes occurred midway through the game, and did not appear to be sparked by the Knicks losing the Game 3 showdown against the San Antonio Spurs.
