MANHATTAN (WABC) — New York City officials are ramping up preparations for Thursday’s historic ticker-tape parade celebrating the Knicks NBA Championship win.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani said city agencies have already been working behind the scenes to prepare for what is expected to be one of the largest celebrations in recent city history.
“As a fan, I haven’t wanted to jinx it, but as the mayor, we’ve been preparing for all these logistics,” Mamdani told Eyewitness News on Sunday.
The mayor said the city is preparing to show its appreciation for a team that delivered New York’s first NBA championship in 53 years.
“We saw different players show up for this team, for this city, and now as a city, we’re going to show up for them,” Mamdani said.
The ticker-tape parade is scheduled for Thursday at 10 a.m. The celebration will begin near Battery Park and travel north along Broadway through the Canyon of Heroes before ending at City Hall.
Following the parade, Mamdani will host a championship celebration and Key to the City ceremony on City Hall Plaza.
“There’s going to be a ceremony at City Hall and a ticker-tape parade, the first in Knicks history, and we’ll present the team with the keys to the city,” Mamdani said.
The event is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of fans, making security and crowd management a major focus for city officials in the days leading up to the celebration.
Fans have been celebrating since Saturday night’s championship-clinching victory, with thousands gathering at watch parties and filling city streets after the Knicks captured their first title since 1973.
The city has also announced plans to illuminate City Hall and several municipal buildings in blue and orange ahead of the celebration.
Thursday’s event will mark the first ticker-tape parade in Knicks franchise history.
