In addition to the tragic loss of life, the global coronavirus pandemic of the past 16 months has taken away so much from daily life. Sunday was a major step towards normalcy in the sports world.
Thanks to the continued vaccine rollout and dropping number of COVID cases, Sunday’s Game 1 of the NBA playoffs between the Atlanta Hawks and New York Knicks was played in front of 15,000 fans — nearly all vaccinated — at Madison Square Garden. Ten of the 16 playoff teams in all are allowing 10,000-plus fans into arenas.
The Knicks hadn’t reached the playoffs since 2013. And when you add that to a year of watching sports in empty stadiums with piped-in noise, it was incredible to see the fired-up crowd at the Garden.
Knicks playoff introductions were special
The Garden is BUMPIN pic.twitter.com/RSBx1v4fJW
— x – KNICKS ON MSG (@KnicksMSGN) May 23, 2021
Some 15,000 people. In one place. Indoors. 90% of them vaccinated. About 14 months after the start of a pandemic that put endless pain on the city and the world. MSG is rocking right now during Knicks lineup intros and loud as hell. What a wild sight to see and experience. pic.twitter.com/FV3pmQLcb5
— Mike Vorkunov (@MikeVorkunov) May 23, 2021
MSG is vibing right now
(via @Brett_Hanfling)pic.twitter.com/ksxaPYHkAU
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) May 23, 2021
It’s great to have that atmosphere back.
