NEW YORK — Fans and media dealt with a heavy police presence ahead of Monday’s NBA Finals game between the Knicks and Spurs at Madison Square Garden.
Because of President Donald Trump’s attendance—the first from a sitting president in NBA Finals history—protective fencing was erected around parts of the arena and police were stationed everywhere, with a presence stretching several blocks beyond the arena.
Secret Service and TSA agents were on site and screened fans and media on their way into the arena. Media and Garden employees entered at the Tower B entrance they usually arrive through, but first had to pass through a protective gate that was part of the perimeter fencing installed for security purposes.
Fans posted photos and videos on social media of long lines to get into the Garden, though the lines began to subside as tipoff neared Monday night.
Despite the extensive security measures, Game 3 tipped off at 8:44 p.m. Eastern—right around when Games 1 and 2 started. And it appeared that the vast majority of the rowdy sellout crowd made it to their seats on time for tipoff.
“Yes, there’s some inconvenience to the fans here, but when looking around at the arena, it’s packed,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said on Inside the NBA about half an hour before tipoff. “So people listened, they came early, they got through whatever extra security which was necessary.”
Trump departed his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club around 7:02 pm, according to the White House pool report, and traveled by helicopter to New York City. He landed in the Financial District by Wall Street and took a motorcade north up Eighth Avenue, pulling into the Garden shortly after 7:30 pm.
Trump is a longtime friend of Knicks owner James Dolan, who typically sits behind the Knicks basket. But Trump was behind protective glass—with Dolan—inside Suite 47 at Madison Square Garden on Monday night. (Trump is the 47th president.)
The MSG jumbotron and ESPN broadcast briefly showed Trump standing next to Dolan and saluting while Avery Wilson performed the national anthem, and Knicks fans greeted him with loud—if brief–boos.
Interior secretary Doug Burgum and transportation secretary Sean Duffy were among numerous Trump officials and family members in his suite Monday night.
The Knicks announced fans would not be allowed to bring bags into the arena and were encouraged to pack light and arrive up to two hours before tipoff to avoid security delays.
Fan parties outside MSG and its surrounding streets were also cancelled because of the president’s appearance, with one moved to nearby Bryant Park.
Beginning at 4 p.m., the NYPD closed streets to the public between West 30th and West 35th, from Eighth Ave. to Sixth Ave., to prepare for Trump’s arrival. Those street closures applied to both vehicular and pedestrian traffic.
The arena opened to the media around 4:30 p.m. On their way into the aren, reporters’ bags were screened by TSA and wanded by Secret Service agents. Pregame media locker access for both the Spurs and Knicks was restricted on Wednesday in light of Trump’s visit, a rarity in the NBA.
Shortly after Trump arrived at the Garden, a second motorcade dropped Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner at the intersection of Eighth Avenue and 33rd Street. Kushner and his son walked through the security barricade and greeted police on their way into the Garden.
Fans with train or game tickets were allowed to enter the arena on foot. Access to Penn Station was limited to the west side entrance on Eighth Avenue, which is outside the secure area.
Trump spent the weekend at his golf club in Bedminster, N.J., after arriving Friday night from an event in Wisconsin. Trump is scheduled to return to Washington after Monday’s game, but didn’t rule out attending Game 4 on Wednesday. The NYPD hinted, though, that Trump would not be in New York on Wednesday, as they said that fan parties outside of Madison Square Garden would return for Game 4.
The Knicks are up 2–0 in the series, chasing their first championship since 1973.
