Knicks fans performed symbolic cleansing rituals outside Madison Square Garden on Wednesday to remove the perceived influence of Donald Trump [1].

The demonstrations highlight the intersection of sports superstition and political tension as the New York Knicks compete in the NBA Finals. Supporters said the former president's presence brought bad luck to the team, which they have termed the "Trump curse" [2, 4].

Hours before Game 4 [5] of the series against the San Antonio Spurs, groups of fans gathered outside the arena. The participants burned sage and copal, traditional materials used in smudging rituals to clear negative energy [3, 5]. Some fans also engaged in activities intended to symbolically "erase" the presence of the former president from the venue [1].

These rituals followed a Game 3 loss to the Spurs [4]. Fans said the defeat was due to the negative energy left behind by Trump's attendance at the arena. By burning incense and performing these acts of purification, the supporters hoped to reset the atmosphere of the building before the team returned to the court [2, 3].

Security barricades were in place ahead of the matchup, but the cleansing activities continued in the public spaces surrounding the garden [5]. The fans said they had a collective desire to purge the venue of any perceived bad luck to improve the team's chances of victory in the subsequent game [2, 5].

“Fans performed symbolic cleansing rituals, including burning sage and “erasing” Donald Trump’s presence.”

The event underscores the role of superstition in high-stakes sports, where fans often seek external explanations for losses. By linking a sporting defeat to a political figure, the fans transformed a game-day ritual into a political statement, reflecting the polarized nature of the current U.S. social climate.