56 arrested, 10 NYPD officers injured in post‑game unrest after Knicks steal Game 4 of NBA Finals

The arrests

The NYPD arrested 56 people on Wednesday night, a sharp rise from the 21 detained during Game 3 two days earlier. Charges include assaulting a police officer, disorderly conduct and possession of a bladed weapon. Some early reports had put the number of arrests at four; the higher figure was confirmed by an NYPD spokesperson on Thursday.

Once again, there were large crowds of people last night, both during and after the game, who engaged in incredibly reckless and dangerous conduct.

Officer injuries and crowd tactics

Ten officers were hurt, one of them struck in the head by a glass bottle. Stun grenades were deployed to break up groups a few blocks from the arena. Police estimated about 10,000 people converged on the area; some climbed onto moving vehicles, tried to tip over a taxi and launched fireworks into the crowd.

Game 3 flashback

On Monday, when President Donald Trump attended Game 3, police made 21 arrests, eight of whom were charged while the rest were fined. Four officers were injured. Spurs supporters were targeted during that match, an episode Victor Wembanyama called “unacceptable”.

Unacceptable.

Pre‑game precautions

Fearing a repeat of Monday’s trouble, authorities banned planned public screenings of Game 4 near the Garden. The measure broke with the practice of the first two Finals games, when fans had watched outdoors without major incident.

Series outlook

The Knicks now lead the best-of‑seven championship 3-1. Game 5 moves back to San Antonio on Saturday. Taylor Swift was among the sellout crowd of 19,000 at Madison Square Garden for the dramatic one‑point finish.