NBA Finals Game 4: San Antonio Spurs vs. New York Knicks Watch Party at Sparrow
Recently, I came across an Instagram post where someone shared that a funeral home was planning a watch party for the fourth game of the 2026 NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs. For all of the finals games so far, I’ve been watching them on my couch at home but I became extremely interested in this event: how could I miss New Yorkers gathering together in a space familiar with loss to cheer on their hometown team, who are attempting to win their first championship since 1973?
Hosting a watch party at Sparrow Funeral Home was the idea of founder Erica Hill, who was interviewed by The City Reporter before the fourth game took place at Madison Square Garden. New York Knicks Center, Karl-Anthony Towns, has spoken openly about his mother’s presence after her death six years ago from complications of COVID-19. Once I saw their Instagram post advertising the event and requesting an RSVP, I messaged the account and signed up myself and my husband, Eric, because I knew it would be more fun watching the game with others than in our apartment alone. Besides, it was only a mile away from our place and I figured it would be fun to get some photos. The follow up post was also great.
I arrived shortly after 7:30 and gave my name to someone working the door before going inside. After claiming seats for myself and Eric in the first room, I decided to walk around and was pleasantly surprised to find that Sparrow truly planned a watch party adorned with basketball plates, snacks, candy, red wine, soda, and beer in coolers in front of the second room. Both rooms projected the games on a wall and provided pretty great sound.
Unsurprisingly, due to the watch party going viral, many media outlets were present such as The New York Times, NBC New York, News 12, and the New York Post. The Knicks were losing in the first half of the game, and pretty much all of the media left at the half. And so did a few people who were attending the event. But for those who stuck around, there was a halftime remembrance for lost loved ones, plus we all got to witness the unbelievable comeback by the Knicks who cut their 29 point deficit to the Spurs and managed to win by one point in the final seconds of the game. There was so much screaming, hugging, and collective joy at Sparrow last night when we realized the Knicks won. I texted multiple people “Screaming! at the Funeral Home” (a reference to this band name, naturally) when we realized that the Knicks might actually pull off this incredible comeback.
Before Eric and I departed Sparrow, we thanked Erica for hosting such a memorable event. We probably would have given up on the game and went to bed if we hadn’t attended the watch party and spent the walk the mile back to our apartment cheering with other New Yorkers who were out and excited by the win. We ran into Diane, who sat in a row in front of us at the funeral home, who made the mistake of leaving early. She rode a CitiBike back to East Williamsburg from Greenpoint and heard people screaming, so she docked her bike and joined the people watching at Carmine’s on Graham Avenue and continued watching Game 4 there.
The above gallery is from the one (and only) finals watch party at Sparrow Funeral Home. Many thanks to Erica Hill and the staff at Sparrow for their hospitality and creating a memorable event that many of us will be talking about very long time.
The New York Knicks face off against the Spurs again on Saturday, June 13th, and New York City is hopeful they’ll come home with their first championship in over five decades.