Watch Spike Lee go through roller coaster of emotions during Knicks Game 1 loss

New York Knicks super-fan Spike Lee went through a rollercoaster of emotions during the teams’ 107-105 Game 1 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

Sunday was a day that New York Knicks fans were looking forward to for a long time. This was the team’s first trip to the NBA Playoffs since 2013, and Madison Square Garden was opened up to 15,000 fans due to the rate of COVID-19 vaccinations.

While the fan reactions throughout the game was a huge story in New York’s Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks, Knicks super-fan Spike Lee stole the show with his reactions court-side. The film director was even hyped during team shoot-arounds ahead of tip-off!

Knicks: Spike Lee steals the show during New York’s Game 1 loss to Atlanta Hawks

Lee’s exuberance would even make non-Knicks fans smile in glee. He has waited for the Knicks to play meaningful basketball games for a long time, and he was enjoying himself. Well, at least until the end of the game.

With the game tied at 105 points apiece, Hawks star Trae Young broke through a double team to hit an easy layup with 0.9 seconds on the clock on what would become the game-winner. As soon as the ball went through the net, cameras cut to a dejected Lee.

The Knicks tried to tie the game up with an inbounds pass to Julius Randle, but he could not get the shot off before the buzzer sounded.

Young led the way for the Hawks, as he tallied 32 points (11-of-23 from field, 9-for-9 on free throws), 10 assists and seven rebounds. As for the Knicks, Alec Burks shined off the bench, as he scored 27 points (9-for-13 from field, 3-for-5 from three-point line), recorded four assists and grabbed three rebounds in 26 minutes.

The Knicks will look to even up the series this Wednesday with a win in Game 2. You can virtually guarantee that Lee will be in attendance for that contest.