In the series opener, a fan rushed onto the hardwood to catch a glimpse of Victor Wembanyama. It was back in San Antonio, and to avoid any such issues at Madison Square Garden, the Spurs had a strategy. Unfortunately, it interrupted ESPN’s schedule, which even led to a change of plans for Wemby, which only a few noticed.

“The Spurs tried to sneak Victor Wembanyama off the floor immediately following the final buzzer,” Rob Perez, also known as World Wide Wob, one of the most recognizable personalities for NBA-related content with 1.1 million followers, stated. “The PR team ran out there before ESPN’s PR team could go grab him because they have the rights to pick a player that they want to interview.”

Network broadcast rights-holders like ESPN are officially entitled to select an impact player for an immediate on-court interview. However, to prioritize security and minimize Wembanyama’s exposure in unprotected spaces, San Antonio’s PR team sprinted onto the floor to guide him directly to the tunnel. Behind Harper and Castle, Wemby was the third Spurs player to exit, leaving network personnel scrambling.

But they eventually caught up with Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs PR team, which ultimately had to turn back around to complete his on-court interview with reporter Lisa Salters on ESPN. “There is always this cat-and-mouse game that happens with team PR versus network PR because the Spurs obviously don’t want Wemby out there outside of team security more than he absolutely has to,” said Perez. “So the hope is that they will just pick somebody else. It’s just one of those things that you pick up on when you’re in the industry. I thought that was something that not a lot of people noticed happened after the final buzzer tonight.”

It also comes after Victor Wembanyama spent his off-day sketching the Edwin Booth statue in Manhattan’s exclusive, private Gramercy Park. Accompanied by his older sister Eve, the 7-foot-4 San Antonio Spurs center took a sketchbook to the park to unwind and calm his nerves before the pivotal matchup. Gramercy Park is a private Manhattan park south of Lexington Avenue where access is highly restricted, normally requiring a key reserved for local residents and select members. Clearly, the Spurs are limiting and micromanaging their superstar’s availability.

Victor Wembanyama called out fans for their actions

The Spurs won Game 3 115-111, and it led to a massive brawl. Not inside MSG but outside. Clips surfaced of Spurs fans being harassed and attacked by a hostile home crowd. San Antonio fans were asked to remove their jerseys and were heavily booed, while some of them were left with a bloodied face. That’s no way to celebrate a win with violence, as it only dampens what the players are doing on the court.

“My thoughts, of course, are that we can’t forget it’s a game,” a visibly flustered Wemby told reporters. “We’re just playing a game out there. I am all for passion, but respect each other. It’s unacceptable.”

The NYPD had ramped up security protocols throughout the playoffs in anticipation of exactly this kind of flare-up, deploying extra units around MSG (at least 1,000 officers above usual levels). It was the first NBA Finals in 27 years for the Garden and the Knicks fans. More than the loss, it was overshadowed by unnecessary violent actions from some of the supporters.