A wild brawl broke out between two female Knicks fans on parade day in New York on Thursday morning, with one supporter having her pants ripped off in a fight over a vantage point on a streetlight.
Manhattan came to a standstill on Thursday as the Knicks paraded their NBA Championship trophy to millions of fans in the city, all of them desperate to catch a glimpse of their heroes after they clinched glory for the first time in 53 years.
But inevitably, there were a few moments of mayhem with so many people crammed into the narrow sidewalks of the lower half of New York. And one of the most vicious exchanges was caught on camera showing two women fighting for position before the parade began.
It was sparked by one Knicks fan ripping the woman away from the streetlight sign and throwing her to the floor after they had exchanged words. The fan who threw the woman to the floor had climbed awkwardly down from a streetlight before forcing her foe out of the way.
The other woman, though, refused to take her medicine. She jumped back up and pulled the woman’s shorts right down.
Instead of being embarrassed, the woman owned the moment as she held on to the street sign that she so desperately wanted to watch the parade from.
Two Knicks fans were filmed embroiled in a nasty fight during the Knicks championship parade
A fan tried to pull a rival’s pants and underwear off as a fight turned nasty in Manhattan
As people around her shouted out in shock, she twerked away as the other woman repeatedly tried to pull the rest of her clothes off her. At one stage, she even appeared to throw a punch and the woman just soaked it up, her grip of the streetlight remaining firm.
It was one of the most shocking scenes on a morning of chaos in New York, which culminated with mayor Zohran Mamdani welcoming the Knicks team to City Hall to congratulate the players on their historic achievement.
Mamdani presented keys to the city to the Knicks’ players, coaches, owners and staff.
Wearing a team jersey under his suit jacket, Mamdani said he and other fans ‘waited because we knew deep down in our sick, suffering hearts’ the Knicks would someday win.
‘For 53 years, we watched. For 53 years, we waited. Now, we won,’ Mamdani said.
Timothee Chalamet, Ben Stiller, Jon Stewart, Mariska Hargitay, Tracy Morgan and other celebrities including Knicks superfan Spike Lee joined the party, while Knicks play-by-play announcer Mike Breen emceed the City Hall ceremony.
‘I’ve never been to a parade – ever – and I’m glad it’s this one,’ Lee said.
Alicia Keys, the singer who collaborated with Jay-Z on the 2009 hit ‘Empire State of Mind,’ performed a medley that mixed her song with the classic ‘New York, New York.’
Fans scrambled to get a quick glance of their heroes, using anything they could to get a view
Fans were forced to scale garbage trucks and street poles to try and get a glimpse of the team
Millions of Knicks fans are in New York to celebrate their NBA champions in Thursday’s parade
Officials said 10,000 police officers were deployed to secure the event, which follows ebullient but sometimes chaotic celebrations – and some violence – over the weekend when the Knicks wrapped up glory in a five-game final against San Antonio Spurs.
At one point before the parade, a small group of people were crushed against a barrier near Fulton Street, a key subway hub, pinned between a swelling crowd and a group of police officers shoving the barrier to keep fans penned in.
‘I had to be here today,’ said Shareefa Wallace, 34, who got up at 3am to make her way from Long Island.
She grew up in the city going to Knicks games, and she sported the souvenir jersey of one of the legends from that era, Patrick Ewing.
