Welcome to Madison Square Garden, Taylor Swift. It’s been waiting for you.
Swift is expected to make an appearance on MSG’s famed celebrity row for Game 4 of the NBA Finals between the Knicks and the Spurs, likely kicking some poor B-lister to the second row (sorry, Tina Fey). The Eras Tour pop star recently attended a playoff basketball game—but in Cleveland, where she and fiancé Travis Kelce cheered on the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals series against the Knicks.
So she’s not a die-hard. Neither is most of New York City.
Swift was born and raised in West Reading, Pa. before moving to Nashville to kickstart her music career. According to J-Lo, she’s not a real New Yorker. But, she has lived in NYC for the majority of her life and written quite a few songs referencing the city (see: “Cornelia Street,” “Delicate,” “False God,” and of course, “Welcome to New York”).
She’s also attended a handful of Knicks games at Madison Square Garden during her pre-Kelce era. Here’s a look back at a few of her most famous outings:
Taylor Swift attends Knicks vs. Magic game in November 2014
Swift last attended a Knicks game at The Garden 12 years ago, a regular season matchup against the Magic in November 2014. (Swifties know this to be her 1989 era.) She was seated in celebrity row alongside Justin Long, Amanda Seyfried, Kate Upton and Justin Verlander.
Taylor Swift attends Knicks vs. Bulls game in October 2014
A month earlier, Swift attended a Knicks home game against the Bulls with then-friend Karlie Kloss. Those who know the lore, know. Those who don’t, enjoy these courtside pics of the former besties:
ten years ago today, taylor swift and karlie kloss attended the chicago bulls vs new york knicks basketball game together
— gaylor throwbacks (@throwbackgaylor) October 29, 2024
october 29, 2014 pic.twitter.com/egbxpkdZfg
Taylor and Karlie at the NY Knicks vs. Chicago Bulls game in NYC! (10/29/14) pic.twitter.com/TLEVxY4BPt
— Taylor Swift Updates🧣 (@TSwiftinAsia) October 30, 2014
It looks like Swift also met up with then-Knicks players Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire that season, too. She posed with the two of them for a now-iconic photo in a No. 13 Knicks jersey (her favorite number) while also sporting white sleeves and a headband. (The Knicks were never, ever getting to the playoffs that year.)
Taylor Swift posing with Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire: pic.twitter.com/sN8OCR2asJ
— Ben Chew (@TheRealBenChew) October 26, 2014
Travis Kelce spoke a bit about her years-old photo with Knicks stars on a recent episode of New Heights:
“Not a lot of teams have been able to get Taylor to wear a jersey, and the Knicks did,” Kelce said in May. “... Tay’s got a lot of New York ties. When it came down to going to the Cavs game, she was like, ‘Oh nice, they’re playing the Knicks, sweet! I’ve seen them play before.’ It was fun.”
Will Travis Kelce also be at Madison Square Garden for Knicks-Spurs Game 4?
Kelce is currently attending Chiefs’ mandatory minicamp in Kansas City, so it doesn’t seem like he’ll be joining Swift for Game 4 at MSG.
Instead, the Grammy-winning singer will reportedly be watching the game with friends. One of those friends could be beloved Knicks fan Mariska Hargitay—Swift named one of her cats “Olivia Benson” after Hargitay’s character in Law & Order: SVU. Hargitay returned the favor by naming one of her own cats “Karma” after a song from Swift’s Midnights album. You love to see it.
“[Swift] is a huge fan of the Knicks and really wants to be there to support them,” a source told Page Six.
Well, if Page Six said it, it must be true.
