Category: Sports News

Courtside chair Taylor Swift sat in for Cavs-Knicks game is up for auction originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The courtside seats in Cleveland will soon have a blank space.

The chair Taylor Swift sat in during Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks has been listed for auction.

According to the listing on The Realist, the opening bid was $100 and, after 38 bids as of Sunday, was listed at $6,000. The auction is set to end June 14, per the listing.

“As one of the most recognized and influential artists of her generation, the occupant of this chair has earned worldwide acclaim through a career defined by commercial success, critical recognition, and multiple Grammy Award victories,” the bidding description reads. “Her attendance reflects the cultural reach of the NBA Playoffs and the significance of the Eastern Conference Finals as one of the most visible events in sports.”

Swift attended the game on May 23 at Rocket Arena with her fiancée, Travis Kelce, the Kansas City Chiefs star and an Ohio native. The chair Kelce sat in is also up for auction at, as of Sunday, $525 after 30 bids.

But it was a cruel summer for the Cavaliers, who lost the game the couple attended 121-108 en route to getting swept in the series – meaning those courtside seats won’t be needed any time soon.  

The chair features a Cavaliers logo, arm rests and a cup holder. The listing says an authenticator was on site to witness Swift’s use of the chair during the game, and the item features a Gold OVD.

“This chair serves as a tangible artifact from a nationally celebrated postseason event,” the listing reads.” “Its connection to one of the world’s most recognizable entertainers adds a distinctive layer of provenance to an item tied directly to the atmosphere and excitement of the 2026 Eastern Conference Finals, further reflecting the Cavaliers’ position at the intersection of sports and pop culture.”

Other seats used by celebrities in the series are also being auctioned. The chair that actor and Knicks fan Ben Stiller sat in during the Knicks’ Game 4 series clincher is listed, as of Sunday, at $385 after 17 bids. Timothée Chalamet’s seat for that game is listed for $106 after 16 bids — and bidders can make it a set by also adding the chair used by Chalamet’s girlfriend Kylie Jenner, which is up to $280 after 21 bids.

“Throughout the 2026 postseason, Chalamet emerged as one of the most visible celebrity supporters of New York basketball,” the listing reads. “Whether attending games at Madison Square Garden or traveling to road playoff matchups, his presence became closely associated with the team’s deepest playoff run in nearly three decades. Television broadcasts, social media coverage, and national headlines regularly featured Chalamet among the faces of a fan base experiencing a long-awaited return to championship contention.”

The Knicks return to Madison Square Garden on Monday for the team’s first NBA Finals home game in 27 years. Holding a 2-0 series lead over the San Antonio Spurs, the team is two wins away from its first championship since 1973. Tickets to the games are at record highs, with the lowest asking prices on the secondary market at five figures.

Celebrity row at the Garden will be full of A-listers. Regulars like Spike Lee, Stiller, Chalamet, Jenner and Tracy Morgan are expected to attend. President Donald Trump will be in the building. Maybe Swift, a New York resident, will even show up.

How much would those chairs sell for?

He has Knicks fans believing they can go all the way — to heaven.

A Long Island bishop who used to play college hoops is using his beloved Knicks and their biblical 13-game postseason winning streak to get New Yorkers closer to God.

“Like Peter, James, and John were called from fishing nets, I was called from basketball nets,” Bishop John Barres of the Diocese of Rockville Centre told The Post near the altar of St. Agnes Cathedral.

“New York Knicks, 2026, we’re so grateful to you,” he said, “For the wonderful way you’ve turned Madison Square Garden again to just a magical place, and brought so many New Yorkers together.” 

The former point guard for Princeton University’s JV team in the late 1970s had his spiritual outlook shaped by both his play and the two-time title-winning Knicks of the era — especially “unselfishness” from fellow Tiger forward Bill Bradley. 

“They formed me in so many ways,” Barres said of watching the 1970 and 1973 NBA champs as a boy.

There are few more jovial than Barres that half a century of agony in the garden may finally end with the Knicks currently up 2-0 over the Spurs in the NBA Finals. 

Barres is exemplifying their long-awaited title run by teaching Long Island’s 1,000 newly confirmed Catholics and others to “step up” their starting roles as “humble, compassionate” lights of Christ. 

“I use the example of Jalen Brunson stepping up with his three pointers — his management of the floor, the wonderful way he passes, the wonderful way he drives to the basket, the wonderful way he reads the other team,” he said.

“I’m mesmerized by Jalen — just watching him, his unselfishness, and just how he does what he does.”

Westchester-born Barres, who, like Brunson, wore No. 11, has remained deeply rooted in Catholicism’s connection to sports — especially at the youth level on LI — ever since his playing days. 

He even hands out priest cards showing him making a layup at the Ivy League school’s Jadwin Gym.

“I think the Holy Spirit prepared me humanly through the basketball experience,” the Bishop said.

The cards also show a dunk-on-the-devil message, “holiness and mission GO FOR IT!” which takes inspiration from a motto by Pope John Paul II, a talented athletic skier himself.

Barres too has been a major advocate for athletics being connector to faith — he even wrote a “ya gotta believe!” letter about the 1969 Mets — and once helped a young man land a role with Hofstra-turned-Villanova’s legendary coach, Jay Wright.

His Excellency is particularly fond of Wright’s excellent “Nova Knicks” in former NCAA champion Wildcats Brunson, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges, a trio Barres has also exemplified.

“The way they have such a wonderful team chemistry is a great metaphor for the Holy Spirit’s chemistry in the mission of the church in every continent,” Barres said.

He added that it’s no mystery of faith why Pope Leo XIV, a 1977 grad of the same Catholic school, wrote a letter on sports having tremendous value for the human spirit ahead of the Winter Olympics. 

Now the Knicks are even coming up in conversation on diocesan work calls, Barres admitted.

He is mulling over new ways to homilize Mike Brown’s Eastern Conference champs after seeing the energy they’ve created in NY.

“It’s on people’s minds…All the things they model to us about true leadership — unselfish leadership for the common good,” he said.

“In some beautiful and mysterious way, this was meant to be, and it’s giving a lift to New Yorkers and Knicks fans…I wouldn’t be surprised this weekend if we see [jerseys and t-shirts at mass].”

Barres has one message to the squad ahead of their return to New York for Game 3 Monday night.

“God bless you all…Go Knicks.”

CHICAGO (AP) — Stacey King, who played on three consecutive NBA championship teams with the Chicago Bulls from 1991-93 before returning to the organization as an Emmy-winning broadcaster, has died. He was 59.

The Bulls announced that King died Sunday and said they were notified by a family member. No other details were immediately available.

“Stacey King was a cherished member of the Bulls family and one of the truly unique personalities in our organization’s history,” Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said in a statement. “His connection to Chicago, the Bulls and our fans spanned more than three decades — first as a player and later as the unmistakable voice that helped bring Bulls basketball into the homes of generations of fans. We will miss him deeply and remember the joy, energy, humor, candor and passion he brought to our organization, our broadcasts and our fans every day. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones.”

King began his NBA playing career with the Bulls, who selected the 6-foot-11 forward/center out of Oklahoma with the sixth overall pick in the 1989 draft. He averaged 6.6 points and 3.3 rebounds over his five seasons with the Bulls.

He played a total of eight seasons in the NBA during a career that also included stops in Minnesota, Miami, Boston and Dallas. King posted career averages of 6.4 points and 3.3 rebounds.

As a broadcaster, King endeared himself to a new generation of Bulls supporters. He spent more than two decades as a commentator on Bulls games.

“Stacey loved being a Bull,” Bulls president and CEO Michael Reinsdorf said in a statement. “You could feel it in everything he did — the way he played, the way he called games and the way he connected with our fans. He had a unique gift for bringing people together and making every game feel personal. He brought an energy and love for the game that came through in every broadcast, helping fans feel connected to our team. Whether it was through a broadcast, a conversation or a photo with a fan, Stacey made people feel seen and valued.

“We were fortunate to know him not only as a player and broadcaster, but as a friend. Stacey genuinely cared about people, and he made our organization better. We will miss him dearly, and his impact, memory and legacy will remain a part of the Chicago Bulls forever.”

King delighted fans with his memorable calls and nicknames. His enthusiasm was apparent every time the Bulls hit a big shot.

“We enjoy what we do,” King said last month on his “Gimme the Hot Sauce” podcast, a reference to a comment he'd frequently make after big plays. “It's a fun job. It never seems like work for me. Every night, I go to work, win, lose or draw, I'm having fun.”

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Stacey King, a big man during the first Bulls three-peat in the early 1990s who became a beloved game analyst for the team’s television broadcasts, died Sunday, the team announced.

He was 59. A cause of death was not disclosed.

“Stacey King was a cherished member of the Bulls family and one of the truly unique personalities in our organization’s history,” owner Jerry Reinsdorf said in a statement.

“His connection to Chicago, the Bulls and our fans spanned more than three decades — first as a player and later as the unmistakable voice that helped bring Bulls basketball into the homes of generations of fans. We will miss him deeply and remember the joy, energy, humor, candor and passion he brought to our organization, broadcasts and our fans every day. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones.”

The Bulls selected King with the No. 6 overall pick in the 1989 NBA Draft out of Oklahoma — where he was a consensus All-American as a senior — and he was a key reserve in Chicago for four-plus seasons, winning three straight NBA championships from 1991-93 during the first half of the Michael Jordan dynasty.

He averaged 6.6 points and 3.3 rebounds in 344 regular-season games with the Bulls, and 4.4 points and 2.2 rebounds in 60 playoff games.

King was traded to the Timberwolves for Luc Longley in February 1994 and later played for the Heat, Celtics and Mavericks.

After a brief coaching career, King went into broadcasting in 2006 and joined the Bulls booth in 2007.

Some of his signature phrases included “Gimme the hot sauce!” and “Sriracha!”

“Stacey loved being a Bull. You could feel it in everything he did — the way he played, the way he called games and the way he connected with our fans,” Reinsdorf’s son Michael, the team’s president and CEO, said in a statement.

“He had a unique gift for bringing people together and making every game feel personal. He brought an energy and love for the game that came through in every broadcast, helping fans feel connected to our team. Whether it was through a broadcast, a conversation or a photo with a fan, Stacey made people feel seen and valued.”

After taking the first two games of the 2026 NBA Finals in San Antonio, the Knicks head home to Madison Square Garden for the next two games with a chance to secure a sweep, which would cap off one of the greatest winning steaks in NBA postseason history. 

And while the Knicks, currently on a 13-game winning streak, aren’t allowing themselves to get caught up in all of the outside buzz and excitement leading into the game, they know it will be special to be back in front of their home fans and give them a taste of the NBA Finals at The Garden in Monday night's Game 3.

“I think it’s really cool -- 27 years since the last Finals here in this building,” said Jalen Brunson. “I know our fan base is really excited, as they should be. But as a team, us inside that locker room, we have more work to do. 

“In my mind, there’s nothing really to celebrate yet. There’s still a lot of work to be done.”

“I expect our fans to come out and do what they do every game, just come and support us at the highest level,” said Karl-Anthony Towns. “It’s always great when you get to come out and play the game of basketball at its highest level, to be able to lace the shoes up, be able to put the jersey on, and be able to see our fans see Finals basketball after all of this time is going to be really, really special.”

Asked if he’s been able to look around the city and take in what the Knicks have accomplished, Brunson’s answer was very direct.

“Not until it’s over,” he said.

Forward Josh Hart, who has 21 rebounds and 10 assists through the first two games, said he knows the Garden is “going to be rocking” and that “the energy is going to be electric,” but he does wish being able to see the game in person was a bit more accessible for the fans, given the astronomical ticket prices just to get into the arena. 

“I kind of wish the ticket prices weren’t as crazy as they are,” Hart said. “I feel like a lot of people have been waiting for this moment for a very long time and unfortunately aren’t able to get into the building, when the cheapest ticket is $7,000-8,000. 

“That’s ridiculous, but it should still be rocking. Just wish those were a little cheaper.”

Heading into Game 3, several Knicks touched on the importance of executing in the fourth quarter, as San Antonio erased a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit in Game 2 before a costly Victor Wembanyama turnover helped the Knicks earn the win. 

“I feel like we played a little slower,” said Hart. “Transitionally, it wasn’t as crisp as it was in the first three quarters. I think if we focus on that and rebounding, we’ll be good.”

As Brunson said, the Knicks have not yet achieved their ultimate goal of bringing the city their first NBA title since 1973.

But if they can win two more games, this Knicks team would go down in history, and for players like Brunson, being part of the team that brought a title back to New York would be an unforgettable achievement.

“I’m so thankful and so honored to put New York across my chest,” the point guard said. “I wouldn’t trade that feeling for anything in the world”