Jerry Seinfeld, Ben Stiller, A$AP Rocky, Timothée Chalamet, Kylie Jenner and Spike Lee react to the Knicks’ comeback victory in Game 4!
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SAN ANTONIO — For the fortunate person who might be associated in some way to a winning basketball team, he is awarded the game ball, the sign of respect, following a victory.
In Ben Stiller’s hands late Saturday night, straight from the New York Knicks’ triumphant locker room, was a clipboard. And what would he do with that?
Write a script, perhaps?
Well, it would be hard for him to pen something that could top the Knicks’ Game 5 victory which ended a 53-year championship dry spell. Even though Stiller, an actor and comedian whose films have grossed over $2 billion, might come close if he tried.
And actually, as he and other celebrities followed the Knicks along this journey both at home and on the road, Stiller does have a Knicks-themed project in the works. He has documented his tales on his cell phone camera and while he politely mentioned “I can’t say much about it right now,” chances are good it will have some famous faces and a happy Knicks ending.
How could it not? The Knicks defeated the San Antonio Spurs with a closeout win Saturday and, as usual, Stiller and Spike Lee and Timothée Chalamet and John Turturro and other A-listers sat up close and absorbed it all.
“An over the top experience” is how Stiller described being connected with the team for almost two months.
He added: “It’s insane, and to be so close to it and to be filming it, and to be around the team, they’re just such a great group of guys. I just left them a few minutes ago. Never been that close to that type of celebration.”
And that’s saying something, coming from an actor who no doubt received invites from the swankiest of Hollywood parties in the past.
But Stiller, much like Lee and Chalamet, grew up in New York and therefore attached themselves to the Knicks very early and a while ago. They’re real Knicks fans and because of their authenticity in that regard, doors were open to them — locker room doors.
Longtime Knicks fan Ben Stiller was a courtside staple at home and on the road during New York’s run to a title.
As the Knicks sashayed off the floor Saturday and into a jubilant locker room, Stiller was along for the joyous ride, got splashed with champagne, the whole nine.
“It’s been incredible to be up close and live it and in a small way,” he said. “The fan exhaustion of the series is real. You also realize how stressful it is mentally for the players. Almost like a war of attrition. The tension builds every game and it gets really, really intense. They were down every game by double digits. It took so much for them to fight back and take this series and the championship.”
By virtue of their location smack in the middle of Manhattan, surrounded by success, the Knicks own the priciest and most famous front row in the NBA if not all of professional sports, with Los Angeles and the Lakers the only rival. These actors and singers sit up front and get splashed on the overhead screen during games, and even people in the upper deck tend to feel close to them because for that moment they’re in the same building with the same rooting interest.
And during this Knicks championship run, the profiles of the famous were only magnified, especially in the Finals. Again, Stiller had a spot behind the ropes because of his steady support and allegiance, and he values the relationships he formed in the process.
“It’s amazing to be close to these guys,” he said. “You can feel their energy. A group of guys who weren’t big stars. Karl-Anthony Towns never had a championship. All these players had something to prove.”
Stiller was asked which experience was greater and more meaningful to him — the Knicks’ astonishing and record-breaking 29-point comeback in Madison Square Garden in Game 4, or the championship clinching Game 5 in San Antonio?
“They both were amazing,” he said, after pondering the comparison. “The fact we won tonight, I’m a little numb by it. Game 4 was one of the most exciting experiences I’ve had at the Garden. Not that this (close-out win) was anti-climatic, but as it was over, you just said to yourself that it’s happening, it’s really happening.”
He paused and pointed.
“Oh look, there’s the MVP trophy walking by.”
More than anything, Stiller seemed genuinely happy for New York City and the starved Knicks fan base, of which he was a member.
“The fans of New York waited so long for this,” he said. “It’s crazy what’s going on in New York right now. The emotion of the city. People my age who lived through it in the ‘90s. My son, who’s 20 grew up with the rough years. And now it’s finally here.”
He made a point to mention one person in particular:
“Spike, man, he lived through it all.”
One thing’s for certain: Those courtside seats at the Garden will be in more demand now, given that the building will once again — finally — be home to an NBA champion. Figure that Stiller and the other faithful famous folks will witness the raising of the banner on opening night next season, and beyond.
After living and mostly dying with the Knicks and the team’s previous championship attempts, this is euphoria.
“They made it happen,” said Stiller, who then carried his satisfaction and his new-found clipboard out of the building and into a new day and age for the Knicks.
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA since 1985. You can e-mail him at spowell@nba.com, find his archive here and follow him on X.
