The New York Knicks stepped in on Friday, Nov. 6, to publicly back Taylor Swift after two of the team’s own players questioned her loyalty to the franchise. Following a livestream appearance in which reserve guards Tyler Kolek and Miles “Deuce” McBride labeled the singer a fair-weather supporter, the team’s front office took the rare step of contradicting its active roster to vouch for the 36-year-old pop star.
“Taylor Swift has been a Knicks fan for many years, has a long history with Madison Square Garden, and we are incredibly appreciative of her support of the organization,” a Knicks spokesperson said in a statement shared with E! News and CBS Sports on Friday.
For the franchise and its home arena, keeping the peace with one of the music industry’s biggest touring draws and most prominent venue clients outweighed letting a casual player interview slide.
What Tyler Kolek and Miles McBride said
The trouble started on Thursday, Nov. 5, during an NBA 2K League interview (described by E! News as a YouTube video and by CBS Sports, Sportsnet, and Hindustan Times as a TikTok livestream) when the two guards were asked: “Who’s the fakest celebrity fan you’ve seen sitting courtside in an NBA game?”
Kolek, 25, who is entering his third season in New York, suggested that celebrity courtside attendance at Knicks games often comes across as an effort to be seen rather than genuine devotion. He singled out Swift, saying he did not recall seeing her at regular games outside of the team’s playoff run, though he acknowledged her packed schedule keeps her from attending all the time.
McBride, 26, backed up his teammate’s pick while immediately bracing for the fallout. “Swifties not gonna like that answer,” McBride said, while Kolek also admitted, “I’m gonna get some hate from the Swifties.” According to Hindustan Times, the NBA 2K League livestream clip was later deleted after drawing backlash from Swift’s fans online.
During the same appearance, Kolek and McBride gave their stamp of approval to actors Ben Stiller and Tracy Morgan as authentic courtside regulars.
Taylor Swift’s history with the Knicks and Madison Square Garden
Swift’s ties to the arena and the team go back more than two decades. In 2003, at age 13, she sang in a Knicks halftime kids’ talent competition at Madison Square Garden. After moving to New York in 2014, she sat courtside in a No. 13 jersey alongside Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire, telling Time magazine that her childhood performance and her friendship with Stoudemire made her a fan of the team.
She was also a fixture during the Knicks’ 2026 championship run earlier this year. On June 10, Swift sat courtside at Madison Square Garden for Game 4 of the NBA Finals, where the Knicks erased a 29-point deficit to beat the San Antonio Spurs 107-106. She attended that game in a custom “Stevie Knicks” shirt alongside Mariska Hargitay, Ben Stiller, and sisters Este and Alana Haim, who wore matching “Knickole Kidman” and “Knickelback” tees.
Earlier in the playoffs, Swift and NFL player Travis Kelce attended a May Eastern Conference Finals game against the Cavaliers at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio; while E! News described the pair as cheering for the Knicks, Sportsnet noted that Ohio native Kelce was backing his hometown Cavaliers. The Rocket Arena chair Swift sat in during that game was later auctioned by The Realest for $7,000. Less than a month after the NBA Finals, Swift and Kelce got married at Madison Square Garden on July 3, with Adam Sandler officiating.
Kolek is not the first sports figure to question her courtside appearances this year. During the June 10 broadcast of Game 4 of the NBA Finals, basketball analyst Monica McNutt reacted to seeing the singer on camera by saying, “Is that Taylor Swift down there? She’s not a Knicks fan. Get out of here girl.” McNutt later walked back the remark in June, telling TMZ, “Shoutout T-Swift. We can be united.” Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy also complained about her presence during the Finals.
Who sits on celebrity row at Madison Square Garden
Swift is part of a crowded lineup of high-profile regulars at Madison Square Garden highlighted by E! News:
- Timothée Chalamet, who credited his grandmother in a 2025 interview on 7PM in Brooklyn for turning him into a fan, frequently attends alongside girlfriend Kylie Jenner, whom he has dated since 2023.
- Ben Stiller told the New Heights podcast in 2025 that he would trade winning an Oscar for a Knicks championship title.
- Filmmaker Spike Lee, a fixture courtside for decades, told the New York Post in May 2026 that the 2025-2026 roster would win the trophy regardless of San Antonio or Oklahoma City.
- Tracy Morgan told The Rich Eisen Show in 2021 that he considers himself the team’s biggest fan right behind Lee.
- Rapper Fat Joe told ESPN hours before the team clinched its Finals berth that longtime supporters had paid their dues through decades of struggles.
- Comedians Pete Davidson and Chris Rock are frequent courtside attendees.
- Curb Your Enthusiasm costars Larry David and JB Smoove are longtime regulars, with Smoove writing on Instagram in 2024, “It’ll always be Knicks for life.”
- Jordyn Woods cheers on the team and is engaged to Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns.
- Cardi B made her relationship with former New England Patriots player Stefon Diggs public at a 2025 game between the Knicks and the Boston Celtics.
- Anne Hathaway wore an orange-and-blue pocket square on The Tonight Show in April 2026 and told host Jimmy Fallon (who brings his eldest daughter, Franny, to games) that she nearly wore an OG Anunoby jersey for her appearance.