The commuter community behind the New York Knicks

Walking up the stairs of the LIRR platforms, fans from Ronkonkoma, Great Neck, or Long Beach turned to check that their friends and loved ones are behind them. Adorned with New York or Nowhere hats and Knicks t-shirts purchased on the street a few days before, their spirits were high before tipoff. These Long Islanders were about to be in New York City when the Knicks won their first NBA Championship since 1973.

But the “where” wasn't nearly as important as the “who.”

On the subway to a Central Park watch party, a daughter rested her head on her father’s shoulders as he watched the game on his iPhone.

Inside Central Park, hundreds of people stretched out on the grass, their view of the actual screen itself blocked by trees and NYPD vans. Instead, they relied on the cheering of those actually inside the watch party to tell them the pace of the game.

And gathered in Penn Station were all those whose original destination didn’t quite work out, whether because of immense crowds or barricaded streets. So, packed shoulder to shoulder in Rose Pizza, Knicks fans made room for soccer fans. The staff made fantastic pizza. And the Knicks made history.

In that moment, it didn’t matter that people wasted their money on a ticket for a watch party they never made it to. It didn’t matter if people in the back of the crowd had to have the score pulled up on their phones because they couldn’t see the TV.

What mattered was the fact that all these people, no matter what LIRR line they came from, were in this together — when the Knicks trailed by 29 in Game 4, and now, when history was made. They came from Long Island only to end up being with every other Long Islander. And it seems they wouldn’t have it any other way.