New York City is a world of opportunity, especially if you’re rich and famous.
Those with influence can secure a spot at any restaurant, Broadway show or exclusive event in town.
But there’s one ticket even the biggest names aren’t guaranteed.
Courtside seats for the New York Knicks are arguably the hottest ticket in town, and it all comes down to the discretion of 71-year-old billionaire James Dolan.
Dolan serves as the Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Madison Square Garden Sports Corp, which essentially means he owns the Knicks.
While many stars and socialites purchase their season tickets (you’re looking at hundreds of thousands of dollars), those who want the coveted courtside seats are at the whim of Dolan.
READ MORE: Venezuela Fury, 16, clarifies huge wedding gift rumour
READ MORE: Man arrested at 16-year-old Venezeula Fury’s wedding
READ MORE: Adam Sandler slammed for ’embarrassing’ display at wife’s premiere
These seats are known as celebrity row; tickets are available by invitation only, and there are two distinct tiers you can be seated in.
The “lowercase” celebrity row covers the camera-friendly first few rows of the arena where actors, athletes, musicians and other VIPs are often given complimentary tickets.
The “uppercase” celebrity row is a little more exclusive. There are only about four seats available per game, and they are reserved for top-tier A-list stars, but the seats come with conditions.
First and foremost, you need to be a Knicks fan. These tickets aren’t just handed out on the basis of celebrity; if you’re not willing to wear orange and blue and get into the game, you’re not welcome on celebrity row.
Taylor Swift and her fiancé Travis Kelce recently made headlines around the world for “sittting courtside at a Knicks game” and have left plenty wondering if they’ll make another appearance.
Chances are slim to none.
Kelce is a die-hard Cleveland Cavaliers fan, and the couple was actually there to support his team against the Knicks. So, it’s basically guaranteed that if they tried to go to a Knicks game now, the answer would be a hard no.
Stars such as Ben Stiller, Timothee Chalamet and Tracy Morgan are proud, public supporters of the Knicks, which is why they’re three of the names you’ll see courtside most often.
Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey, Julianne Moore and Jay-Z are among the other stars you’ll often see make an appearance. But the trick is, the bigger the game, the more exclusive these seats get.
And it’s not as simple as securing a seat. Just because you’ve been invited once doesn’t guarantee you’ll be invited back. You have to play along with the rules.
“This is an appearance, you don’t just get to go to the Knicks game,” former Knicks player Iman Shupert said on an episode of the Shump Street podcast.
“You don’t get the free tickets for nothing; you better be touchable. Getting out them dabs, we need them autographs, take them pictures with them kids. Sign them basketballs. Yeah, we need that!”
Stars are expected to arrive camera-ready, appear on the jumbotron, maybe film some social content, but the key is to appear as though you’re genuinely excited to be there.
Back in November 2023, Emily Ratajkowski and Irina Shayk scored seats on uppercase celebrity row, but they left the game early.
Ratajakowski later revealed it was a childcare issue that forced the pair to leave before the final buzzer, but it seems, in the eyes of Dolan, that’s not a good enough excuse.
The duo has allegedly been banned from receiving free tickets not just to Knicks games, but also to New York Rangers games, which are also played at MSG. Although they have reportedly been told that they are welcome to purchase tickets at face value.
But it’s not just what you do at the game that can get you banned from celebrity row; you’ve got to keep up appearances at all times.
Ethan Hawke used to be a courtside regular, but some comments he made on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon put him on the blacklist.
“I’ve been a Knicks fan for a long time, but I got kicked out of the Garden. They won’t give me tickets anymore,” Hawke revealed on a 2018 episode of Bill Simmons’ podcast.
“I was really vocal on some talk shows like this, that I thought it was a huge mistake to let Mike D’Antoni go.
“They’d always hook me up, and then I called up one time, and they said, ‘That’ll be $7,800.’ I was like, ‘Why is this the first time you guys are charging me?’
“And they said, ‘You should have thought of that before you went on the Jimmy Fallon show.'”
Stars can help garner favour with Dolan by participating in and donating to MSG’s Garden of Dreams foundation, but it’s not enough alone to secure an invite, and it’s definitely not enough to come back from a ban.
So, next time you see your favourite celeb sat courtside at a Knicks game, look at who they’re surrounded by, because according to James Dolan, that’s the absolute cream of the crop.
