A Brief Investigation Into Trump’s Knicks Fandom
New Yorkers are still riding high after the Knicks soundly defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday and booked their first appearance in the NBA Finals since 1999. Donald Trump is apparently paying attention, too, and the fans and A-listers preparing to fill Madison Square Garden with blue and orange may have to make room for him. Trump is planning to attend a game of the championship series at the storied arena after receiving an official invite from longtime pal James Dolan, the owner of both the team and MSG. If you weren’t aware of Trump’s affinity for the Knicks — and it’s already become a political football — that’s because there hasn’t been much sign of it lately. When he was just a celebrity, Trump used to be a periodic courtside presence at the Garden and make regular cameos in greater Knicks culture, but the extent of politician Trump’s fandom is less clear. He may or may not be able to name multiple members of the Knicks’ current starting lineup, but here’s the evidence of his past relationship with the team.
What’s the proof Trump went to games? TV clips and wire photos.
Though his attendance numbers would hardly rival that of Knicks superfan Spike Lee, Trump has been seen at a number of home games at Madison Square Garden, but only during his days as a businessman and celebrity figure — and particularly during his Apprentice years. Wire photos show Trump sitting courtside from the 1990s through the 2010s with his wives Marla Maples and Melania Trump, as well as other prominent names. He could also be seen courtside in television broadcasts, and a few clips have been preserved online.
. Knicks vs. Suns on March 5, 1991
Trump attended with his second wife, Maples, and sat next to actor Elliott Gould. The Knicks lost to the Phoenix Suns 107-102.
Game 5 of the 1993 Eastern Conference Finals vs. Bulls
In an interview with Ira Berkow about what he likes about basketball, Trump said he attended the fifth game of the 1993 Eastern Conference Finals, which the Knicks lost to the Bulls. Here’s Trump’s recollection of the June 2 game’s most pivotable (and excruciating) moment, via an excerpt from Berkow’s book, Court Vision: Unexpected Views on the Lure of Basketball:
All the guys who make it to the NBA have something special, no doubt about it. They’ve gone from level to level and they’ve reached this pinnacle. And then there’s one level more, the level of being a true winner or not. There was that famous triple pump-shot in the playoff game for the Knicks that didn’t go in. It was Charles Smith, who got three straight rebounds under the basket in the last seconds against the Bulls and couldn’t put one in, and the Knicks lost that game and the playoff round. Now Charles Smith is a very good guy, but at nearly seven feet tall it was disappointing for him not to put the ball in the basket. I was at that game, and it’s true that he was going up against three great defensive players at that moment—Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Bill Cartwright—but I don’t think Michael Jordan or Charles Oakley or Charles Barkley or some other players we know would have been triple-pumping under the basket at that point in the game. They would have sealed the deal.
All the guys who make it to the NBA have something special, no doubt about it. They’ve gone from level to level and they’ve reached this pinnacle. And then there’s one level more, the level of being a true winner or not. There was that famous triple pump-shot in the playoff game for the Knicks that didn’t go in. It was Charles Smith, who got three straight rebounds under the basket in the last seconds against the Bulls and couldn’t put one in, and the Knicks lost that game and the playoff round. Now Charles Smith is a very good guy, but at nearly seven feet tall it was disappointing for him not to put the ball in the basket. I was at that game, and it’s true that he was going up against three great defensive players at that moment—Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Bill Cartwright—but I don’t think Michael Jordan or Charles Oakley or Charles Barkley or some other players we know would have been triple-pumping under the basket at that point in the game. They would have sealed the deal.
. Game 3 of the 1994 NBA Finals vs. Rockets
Trump and Maples crashed an on-air segment during game three of the 1994 NBA Finals (on June 12), which the Knicks lost 93-89 to the eventual champion, the Houston Rockets.
. Game 7 of the 1995 Eastern Conference Finals vs. Pacers
In that same interview with Berkow, Trump also claimed he was at the infamously heartbreaking game seven of the 1995 Eastern Conference Finals between the Knicks and Pacers, which the Knicks lost 97-95 after Patrick Ewing missed a buzzer-beating layup at the end:
Ewing got the Knicks 95 percent of the way there, but couldn’t get that last five percent.There was one game that was a kind of microcosm of his career. It was the seventh game of the playoffs against Indiana at Madison Square Garden. I was at the game, and it was a game no Knick fan will ever forget. Patrick had........
