Jay-Z Goes Viral for New Look at Knicks-Spurs Game 3 of NBA Finals

The NBA Finals are usually an exciting time when the celebrities come out to root for their favorite teams, but that's even more so the case with the New York Knicks. This franchise has some of the biggest celebrity fans in the NBA, and they're not shy about sitting courtside to cheer on the Knicks at games, especially when it's the NBA Finals.

So, it's not surprising that on Monday, June 8, a crop of celebrities were spotted courtside at Madison Square Garden to root for the Knicks up against the San Antonio Spurs. Spike Lee was there, of course, as well as Timothée Chalamet, Josh Safdie, Tracy Morgan, Tina Fey and Cardi B, the latter who performed at the halftime show. However, the celebrity power didn't help the Knicks, and they fell 115-111 to the Spurs.

Blockbuster rapper Jay-Z was at the game, too. His new look during the game actually stole the show.

Jay-Z Sports New Afro Hairdo at Knicks vs. Spurs Game 3

Jay-Z sat courtside at the Knicks-Spurs game, and he was sporting a new afro which he recently debuted at Roots Picnic the final weekend of May. Photos of him at the game surfaced on social media, and one from New York Basketball account shows a pic of Jay-Z at a Knicks game back in 2002 and again this year. The tweet has nearly a quarter of a million views, and counting.

Jay-Z courtside
2002 2026 pic.twitter.com/DeASjIqycf
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) June 9, 2026

According to Cosmopolitan, his viral hairdo was created by celebrity hairstylist Letisia "Lety" Ravelo. Cosmo caught up with Lety to talk about the hairdo, and she said it took six days to comb out his locs ahead of the new look.

"It took six days to deconstruct the locs," she told the magazine. People see the final look and don't realize how much time goes into preserving the hair, the length, and the health of the hair."

Jay-Z's Hairdresser Says They Balanced Working on His New Hairdo With Rehearsals and Other Duties

She added that it was a laid-back process though, noting: "We weren't working around the clock, but he made sure to carve out time for it every day, even while balancing rehearsals and everything else he had going on. This wasn't something he rushed through—it was a process."

Lety also said that Jay-Z had a strong vision for the look and was "very clear about what he wanted." He knew it would take time and told her that he was willing to do what it took to get the look that he wanted.

"He knew it would take time, and he was patient through the entire process," she told the outlet. "There was never a moment where he was like, 'Forget it, let's just cut it.'"

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