Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns took part in WWE Saturday Night's Main Event at Madison Square Garden as the New York Knicks continued celebrating their NBA championship with fans in New York.
The appearance came just over a month after the Knicks won the title in San Antonio and ended a 53-year championship drought. Saturday Night's Main Event returned to Madison Square Garden for the first time since 2007.
Brunson joined Roman Reigns in the closing segment
Brunson appeared alongside WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns, one of the guard's favorite wrestlers. The connection is familiar to Knicks fans because Brunson performs a Reigns-inspired handshake with a team trainer before games.
After Brunson was introduced as the King of New York, Reigns presented the NBA Finals MVP with a customized championship belt featuring a blue-and-orange stripe. The Madison Square Garden crowd responded with chants for the Knicks captain.
The segment changed when Seth Rollins' entrance music played. Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton appeared instead, renewing his rivalry with Brunson around a WWE ring for the second time.
Haliburton's arrival distracted Reigns and created an opening for Rollins, Reigns' scheduled SummerSlam challenger, to attack. Brunson stepped between Rollins and Reigns before the wrestler recovered and ended the confrontation with a Superman punch and a spear.
Towns assisted Danhausen earlier in the show
Towns also became part of the event when he helped WWE performer Danhausen inside the ring. Danhausen had become a Knicks good-luck figure after an earlier appearance preceded New York winning 15 of its final 16 games on the way to the championship.
The two appearances connected the Knicks' title celebration with WWE's return to Madison Square Garden. Brunson's segment also brought the Knicks-Pacers rivalry into the show's main-event storyline without changing the focus of Reigns' upcoming match with Rollins.
For the Knicks, the night provided another public celebration of the franchise's first championship in 53 years. For WWE, the participation of Brunson, Towns and Haliburton added local basketball context to a major New York event.