Boomer Esiason Blames Celeb Row for Knicks’ Woes at Madison Square Garden

Are the Knicks better off playing away from the stars sitting courtside at the Garden? One commentator thinks so.

Celeb row at a Knicks playoff game. / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

No team in the NBA has a celebrity row like the New York Knicks, who have packed the courtside seats at Madison Square Garden with the likes of Spike Lee, Timothée Chalamet, Ben Stiller, Tracy Morgan, and many, many more throughout their playoff run.

According to one commentator, that star power is a problem.

On his radio show on Tuesday morning, Boomer Esiason was speaking to what made the Knicks’ Game 3 win over the Pacers so satisfying. After praising head coach Tom Thibodeau for trusting his bench players, as well as shouting out the efforts of Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson in crunch time, Esiason intimated that the Knicks might be better off playing on the road.

"They play better on the road than they do at home,” Esiason said. “I think they're just sick and tired of all the goddamn celebrities at home. They hate playing in front of these people, and they'd just rather get away from all of that and go play. Go play defense and figure out a way to win on the road. There’s something to be said about that. When you go on the road, it’s you and your teammates. That’s it.”

"I think they're just sick and tired of all the goddamn celebrities at home. They hate playing in front of these people, and they'd just rather get away from all of that." - Boomer Esiason diagnosing the Knicks' playoff struggles at MSG pic.twitter.com/yjFrz5fnvf

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 27, 2025

To Esiason’s point, the Knicks are 6–1 on the road thus far this postseason, and just 3–5 at the Garden, so maybe there is something to his theory.

That said, the Knicks currently are stuck with what, under the circumstances, could be considered “homecourt disadvantage,” as they trail in the series 2–1 with two games left to play at home. That means that, to make the NBA Finals, they’re going to have to win at least one more contest in front of Chalamet & Co.

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