The NYPD is searching for a suspect after a 17-year-old boy was beaten into a coma near Madison Square Garden following Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday.
The teenager was reportedly approached by a group of people then attacked over a verbal dispute in the aftermath of the New York Knicks’ historic comeback over the San Antonio Spurs. It ended with him getting punched and kicked in the head and body, causing him to have a seizure and go into a coma.
Per New York’s WABC, the dispute was specifically about the series and involved a content creator attempting to provoke a crowd of Knicks fans:
The fight apparently began with a content creator allegedly provoking Knicks fans. Detectives have reviewed cellphone video that shows the content creator interviewing a member of the crowd. The content creator asked members of the crowd, “Who do you got?” And one person said “I’ve got the Knicks.”
A person with content creator, in an apparent attempt to provoke the crowd for social media, responded, “Spurs in 7.” The person being interviewed responded, “Go Knicks, suck my (expletive).”
A fight then ensued. Police said the group of Knicks fans challenged the content creator, and the 17-year-old victim became involved and was assaulted.
The NYPD released a picture of a suspect alleged to have punched and kicked the teenager on Friday morning:
The story is the latest example of a disorderly scene following the Knicks’ win, which has them one win away from their first NBA championship since 1973.
A total of 56 people were either arrested or hit with a criminal summons in the fallout of the game. One particularly ugly scene saw the Spurs getting greeted by a mob of Knicks fans at their team hotel, with some fans throwing projectiles at star Victor Wembanyama and shining laser pointers at the group.
Wembanyama has since said the incident didn’t bother him, though it figures to be a subject of attention if the Spurs win Game 5 on Saturday and send the series back to Manhattan.
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