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A historic audience witnessed the Knicks’ historic championship.
The Knicks’ drought-ending series against the San Antonio Spurs was the most-watched NBA Finals since 1998, the league announced.
An average of 20.6 million viewers tuned in on ABC and ESPN as the Knicks defeated the Spurs in five games.
The viewership was even higher for title-clinching Game 5, which averaged 24.5 million viewers — and peaked at 33 million — on Saturday night.
That 94-90 win by the Knicks in San Antonio was the most-watched Game 5 of an NBA Finals since, again, 1998.
Of course, 1998 marked the last of Michael Jordan’s Finals appearances and resulted in his third consecutive championship and sixth overall with the Chicago Bulls.
That these Finals were the biggest draw since Jordan’s prime is a testament to the robust fan base of the Knicks, who watched Jalen Brunson and company lead the franchise to its first NBA title since 1973.
It’s also a testament to the burgeoning star power of 22-year-old Spurs phenom Victor Wembanayama, the popular pick to be the next face of the NBA, whose earlier-than-expected first trip to the Finals made the matchup even more compelling.
“To have the fans that we have in New York City, and be able to bring home a championship after all these years, is absolutely amazing,” Knicks head coach Mike Brown said after Game 5. “It’s a surreal feeling.”
Knicks fans haven’t stopped celebrating since then.
The Knicks set a record for championship merchandise sold — for any team, in any sport, ever — on Fanatics.
The 2026 Finals at large, meanwhile, more than doubled the previous Finals record (2020) for overall merchandise sales across multiple vendors, including NBAStore.com, Fanatics and the team stores.
And as of Tuesday evening, this year’s NBA Finals had commanded 15 billion views on social media, more than tripling the previous high mark (2025) for a Finals.
The celebration continues Thursday morning, when the Knicks are set to ride down the Canyon of Heroes in Lower Manhattan for their championship parade.
Continue reading...
The Knicks’ drought-ending series against the San Antonio Spurs was the most-watched NBA Finals since 1998, the league announced.
An average of 20.6 million viewers tuned in on ABC and ESPN as the Knicks defeated the Spurs in five games.
The viewership was even higher for title-clinching Game 5, which averaged 24.5 million viewers — and peaked at 33 million — on Saturday night.
That 94-90 win by the Knicks in San Antonio was the most-watched Game 5 of an NBA Finals since, again, 1998.
Of course, 1998 marked the last of Michael Jordan’s Finals appearances and resulted in his third consecutive championship and sixth overall with the Chicago Bulls.
That these Finals were the biggest draw since Jordan’s prime is a testament to the robust fan base of the Knicks, who watched Jalen Brunson and company lead the franchise to its first NBA title since 1973.
It’s also a testament to the burgeoning star power of 22-year-old Spurs phenom Victor Wembanayama, the popular pick to be the next face of the NBA, whose earlier-than-expected first trip to the Finals made the matchup even more compelling.
“To have the fans that we have in New York City, and be able to bring home a championship after all these years, is absolutely amazing,” Knicks head coach Mike Brown said after Game 5. “It’s a surreal feeling.”
Knicks fans haven’t stopped celebrating since then.
The Knicks set a record for championship merchandise sold — for any team, in any sport, ever — on Fanatics.
The 2026 Finals at large, meanwhile, more than doubled the previous Finals record (2020) for overall merchandise sales across multiple vendors, including NBAStore.com, Fanatics and the team stores.
And as of Tuesday evening, this year’s NBA Finals had commanded 15 billion views on social media, more than tripling the previous high mark (2025) for a Finals.
The celebration continues Thursday morning, when the Knicks are set to ride down the Canyon of Heroes in Lower Manhattan for their championship parade.
Continue reading...
