New Yorkers are set to fete the Knicks with a ticker-tape parade

New York is set to fete the Knicks with a ticker-tape parade on Thursday, a historic celebration capturing the franchise’s first NBA title in 53 years. The parade is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. near Battery Park and travel up Broadway through the Canyon of Heroes, ending at City Hall where players will receive the keys to the city. Mayor Zohran Mamdani outlined the night’s program, with Knicks legends Walt Frazier and Patrick Ewing due to participate and Mike Breen serving as emcee for the City Hall ceremony. Alicia Keys is among the performers, continuing New York’s storied ticker-tape tradition.

Public-safety planning calls for about 10,000 police officers to secure the route and roughly 650 sanitation workers to manage debris, reflecting the scale of the city’s largest celebrations. The ticker-tape tradition began in 1886 to celebrate the Statue of Liberty dedication and was formalized as a city-organized event in 1919, later honoring achievements across aviation, war, music, and sports. The Knicks’ parade will be the 210th in the city’s history, symbolizing a moment of immense local pride.