AILSA CHANG, HOST:
All right, New York Knicks fans have never been short on belief. Their team has not won the NBA championship in more than 50 years. That's a half century, people. But now the Knicks have won 13 straight games and are just two wins away from the title. And tonight, the NBA Finals head to New York City for Game 3 against the San Antonio Spurs. And President Trump is expected to show up in person, which means a whole lot of security around Madison Square Garden. So one big public viewing party is moving north to Bryant Park, which is right outside of NPR's New York bureau, and that is where we find NPR's Willa Rubin. Hi, Willa.
WILLA RUBIN, BYLINE: Hi, Ailsa.
CHANG: What is the energy like? Like, what are you seeing? What are you hearing? Bring me there.
RUBIN: (Laughter) Ailsa, the energy is massive. Well, but it's interesting because while the palpable - the energy is palpable around New York City, around Bryant Park around 3 o'clock in the afternoon, they blocked off the gates, the sort of entrance areas of this park...
CHANG: Yeah.
RUBIN: ...Which is, you know, super popular. Around 12 million people visit a year. It's normally full of tourists who are here to visit the Stephen Schwarzman New York Public Library building, say hi to Patience and Fortitude, the lions that are at the entrance...
CHANG: Oh, yes.
RUBIN: ...To the library, of course.
CHANG: I love those lions.
RUBIN: Love the lions. Or they're here because they are white-collar workers. They're here eating their salad bowls. But yeah, 3 o'clock, it all became pretty tranquil.
CHANG: (Laughter).
RUBIN: And, you know, there're normally, like, chairs that are scattered all around the lawn. But when I walked by this afternoon, some of the workers at Bryant Park told me that all 4,000 chairs had been moved to the outskirts of the lawn, getting the lawn ready for another big party.
CHANG: I mean, there have been other watch parties during these playoffs outside of Madison Square Garden. So how does...
RUBIN: Yeah.
CHANG: ...Where you are right now compare with those watch parties? It's just so much bigger. There's so much more excitement, I imagine, yeah?
RUBIN: Well, there's so much excitement in New York City right now. I mean, as the Knicks have done (ph) super well across this entire season, there have been these gigantic watch parties around Madison Square Garden. And like, these parties have just become even more big, even more raucous. At one point, the New York Police Department tried to tame those down.
CHANG: What?
RUBIN: That ultimately did not come to pass. The fans prevailed.
CHANG: (Laughter).
RUBIN: But, you know, because President Trump is in New York today to watch the Knicks' first game in the finals on their home turf in New York City, the Secret Service has shut down the area around Madison Square Garden...
CHANG: Womp, womp (ph).
RUBIN: ...Hence the move to Bryant Park.
CHANG: Right. OK, I mean, you are nailing it here. This is the first finals appearance since 1999 for the Knicks, so...
RUBIN: Yeah.
CHANG: ...New York City's going kind of insane right now. Can you just paint me a picture of the all-out insanity across the city right now?
RUBIN: Yeah. I mean, New York City, I think it is fair to say, is losing its collective minds. You know, walking down the street, you know, you see orange and blue everywhere, chalk on the sidewalks. Everyone is in their Knicks varsity jerseys, their bedazzled Knicks-themed hats.
CHANG: Love it.
RUBIN: I talked to a family who have been watching the Knicks for a really long time, you know, have been heartbroken - in their words - before, but now is a particularly special moment.
KAY DESAN: It's been a roller coaster. Like, we literally just felt everything. Like, it's undescribable (ph).
RUBIN: That was Kay Desan (ph). She was with Damien Desan (ph). And they were super excited, as is so much of New York City, because for the first time in a long time, the Knicks may have a shot.
CHANG: They may indeed have a shot. That is NPR's Willa Rubin, Planet Money producer, but today, our New York City basketball correspondent. Thank you so much, Willa.
RUBIN: Thank you so much, Ailsa. It's been a pleasure. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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