The Athletic celebrates ‘Zohran Mamdani’s Summer of Sports’ in dramatic fashion after New York Knicks win NBA Finals
NYC Knicks celebration turns into chaos with multiple arrests, bus burning
New York City’s celebration of the Knicks’ NBA championship turned into chaos, with Chanley Painter reporting multiple arrests, stabbings and five school buses being burned. The NYPD brought out riot police and police horses to control the growing unrest after the historic victory.
The New York Knicks won their first NBA championship since 1973 on Saturday night, completing yet another victory over the San Antonio Spurs 94-90.
Meanwhile, a few weeks ago, the English Premier League soccer team Arsenal won the league for the first time since the 2003-2004 season.
Both teams have famous players in the prime of their careers. Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby and Karl Anthony-Towns played for the Knicks, especially in the postseason. For Arsenal, it was carried by stars such as Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard and goalkeeper David Raya.
You would think that the credit for this team would go to the players, coaches, front and office staff. But that would imply a level of awareness and common sense that many within left-wing sports media organizations lack.
KNICKS DEFEAT SPURS IN GAME 5 TO WIN FIRST NBA GAME SINCE 1973, ENDING 53-YEAR DRY.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani arrives to participate in the National Puerto Rican Day Parade in New York City on June 14, 2026. (Adam Gray/Associated Press)
Don’t look away Athletic as an example. Suddenly, the outlet owned by the New York Times wrote about X on Sunday afternoon celebrating the two teams as part of the “Zohran Mamdani summer of sports.” Because Mamdani is a fan of both these teams, so it is his “summer of sports” because both have been successful.
What in the world?
What does Zohran Mamdani have to do with any of this? Is it Athletic posting on social media about “Donald Trump’s sports year” if, say, the Yankees win the World Series this fall? Trump has been attending Knicks games since before Mamdani lived in New York, after all.
KNICKS SEND CEASE-AND-DESIS TO MAMDANI THROUGH LOGU USE, SAY ‘WANT TO CLARIFY’ PLAYERS
President Donald Trump watches before Game 3 of the 2026 NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden in New York City on June 8, 2026. (Al Bello/Getty Images)
More impressively, Mamdani is credited with being an Arsenal fan, even though he has never lived in the UK. Did he choose Arsenal because he likes a certain style of play, or because of a long-standing connection to North London? Not so, in his words, his Arsenal fandom started because they signed some African players in the early 2000s.
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“I came as a fan in the early 2000s, it was my uncle who introduced me to the team,” said Mamdani. Vulture for the 2025 interview. “I was born in Kampala, Uganda, East Africa, and my father’s family is from East Africa, and Arsenal was one of the first teams to have many African players: Lauren, Kolo Toure, Nwankwo Kanu, Emmanuel Eboue, Alex Song.”
This strange “celebration” is made even more strange considering that Arsenal lost the Champions League final to Paris Saint-Germain. And the New York Mets ended their infamous 12 game losing streak after Mamdani posed for a photo with the Mets mascots. He flashes his trademark painted smile during the process.
Ms. Met hugs Zohran Mamdani at Citi Field before the game between the New York Mets and the Arizona Diamondbacks on April 9, 2026, in New York City. (Caean Couto/Getty Images)
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But again, the broader point is this: it can be Athletic Post the same celebration as a Republican mayor or politician? Stan Kroenke, the owner of Arsenal, has donated to both political parties, but has mostly supported Republicans, including giving $1 million to Trump’s 2016 inauguration committee. He is also a billionaire, which Mamdani believes he should not be. Knicks owner Jim Dolan said Trump is a “good guy,” and he’s a billionaire. He invested money in building his organization.
So Mamdani gets the credit and celebration of Arsenal’s wins, or the money used to turn Arsenal and the Knicks into championship-level teams from the billionaires Mamdani opposes. Perfection. Although this is, after all, the same media outlet that headlined the story, “Donald Trump, James Dolan tried to destroy NBA Finals vibe. Knicks loss killed.”
Mamdani was somehow not to blame for that loss, and the story was not updated after the same writers on the left blamed the “thrills” for falling behind by 29 points in Game 4. They won that game, of course. Leftist sports media in a nutshell.
