The aggression in the Big Apple did not subside even after the New York Knicks won Game 4. Just when assaulting NYPD cops and leaving San Antonio Spurs fans bloodied appeared to be the extent of it, the locals have switched their crosshairs to a giant 7’4″ target.

Clips surfaced online, both before and after the game, showing Knicks fans camped outside the hotel where the Spurs were staying. If that wasn’t bad enough, these fans, who were barely contained by barricades, were hurling expletives and boos at the Spurs players heading inside. While Stephon Castle and Devin Vassell slipped through relatively unscathed, the hostility escalated when Victor Wembanyama stepped off the bus.

Not only did the boos get louder, but multiple people in the crowd also threw eggs at him in the most alarming postseason security breach. It’s not clear if it hit the back of Wemby’s head and/or the signpost next to him. But Wemby immediately ducked, looked stunned, but kept striding forward.

The security (who were considerably shorter than the 7’4″ center) grabbed his waist and somehow dragged him inside before things got worse. The officers guarding the barricades would’ve confronted those who threw the eggs, but the video cuts off before we know what happened any further.

But this became a sign of unchecked spectator behavior escalating to terrifying proportions after the Knicks’ historic 107-106 comeback. They are just one win away from ending a 53-year drought. In pockets of the NY fanbase where sanity prevails, they’d already be terrified of what would happen further down the series. That’s simply because this wasn’t an isolated incident.

Before Game 4, New Yorkers had already camped outside the hotel during the day. They’d rain curses on the Spurs players if they appeared on the rooftop. When Wemby was trying to leave the hotel before the game, the crowd made it very difficult. Besides yelling things like “F— you Wemby!” and “KAT owns you! You soft a** b****!,” they made it tough for him to get to the bus. Wemby maintained a stoic demeanor. But clearly, the situation is only devolving.

You may have already heard about the public spat between James Dolan and Mayor Zohran Mamdani. The MSG owner has gone on record to call him and Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch “party poopers” for enhanced security measures around his arena.

“This is about celebrating the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, at the Mecca of basketball,” Dolan said. “This is what the mayor’s office and the commissioner’s office is trying to kill. They don’t want the celebration.”

Dolan wasn’t happy about receiving permission for just a 1,000-person watch party outside MSG. He felt that what the mayor privately communicated to his office was “restrictive.”

But the NYPD hit back at that allegation, saying MSG’s application for a Game 4 watch party listed attendance between 500 and 999 people. And nobody contacted them about any changes to the numbers. The New York Times also confirmed the fact. Dolan, however, decided to call off the event.

In a statement posted on X, Mamdani said Dolan had “decided to cancel the watch party,” a move he called “breaking hearts across our city.”

“We’re not about 999 people,” Mr. Dolan said. “We’re about millions of people.”

That cancellation didn’t help the chaos, which was already unfolding across NYC, and it only got worse.

How the brawls in NYC escalated after Victor Wembanyama & Co. collapsed in Game 4

The Game 4 win caused chaos in Midtown Manhattan again. The hotel confrontation was a direct escalation of the celebratory ‘riots’ that broke out on 7th and 6th Avenues.

A massive gathering had turned dangerous as thousands of fans flooded the streets, completely blocking traffic and causing property destruction. Multiple social media videos capture rowdy spectators climbing onto standard yellow cabs, shattering windshields, and stomping on roofs. A mob was tearing off traffic signs. When the Knicks were mounting a second-half comeback, some fans set off firecrackers, creating a terrifying situation for people nearby.

This alarming escalation directly mirrors the attacks on Spurs fans in NYC after the Knicks had lost Game 3. Several away fans were forced to give up their jerseys to escape mobs. One video showed a fan who was left with a bleeding face…

After hearing about the attacks on Monday, Victor Wembanyama had a stern response.

“My thoughts, of course, [are] that we can’t forget it’s a game,” he said. “We’re just playing a game out there. I am all for passion, but [with] the respect of each other. It’s unacceptable.”

The Spurs reps confirmed that the players had not experienced hostility at that time. But it looks like some people took it on as a challenge because their hotel became the epicenter of chaos the very next day.

With the Knicks on the precipice of modern basketball immortality, their fans’ behavior is severely ruining the celebration. Many online felt that this violence took away from the thrill of OG Anunoby tipping the ball in at the last second to win the game. Some locals even fear what would happen if there were a victory parade among unchecked fans…

As both teams prepare to fly back to Texas for Game 5, the league’s front office and local law enforcement face immense pressure not only about player security but also the fans, the longer the series stretches.