Even if you are an athlete, you can get caught up in the wrong person.
New York Knicks guard Tyler Kolec found himself at the center of an awkward mix-up during the team’s NBA Championship Parade on Thursday, June 18, when an NYPD officer apparently mistook him for a member of the crowd.
ESPN’s Kimberly A. Martin shared a video via X that shows the 25-year-old Korek enthusiastically celebrating with fans along the parade route, stopping midway through the festivities to high-five supporters.
At one point, two police officers approached the basketball player and appeared to try to keep him away from the team’s celebration.
In the video, Kolek could be seen reacting to the scuffle. He appeared to be trying to explain to the officers that he was actually a Knicks player.
Martin captioned the post: “Police mistook Tyler Korek for a fan 😩 #alwaysknicks.”
The moment quickly went viral, with fans making fun of the mishap.
“Give this guy a spot on the Knicks roster!!! Hats off to Tyler Kolek’s name 😩,” one X user wrote in response to the clip.
Mr. Kolek seemed to take the incident calmly. Referring to the incident via X, he joked, “I swear I’m part of the team 😂😂😂.”
Tyler Kolek.
(Photo by Carmen Mandert/Getty Images)The victory parade was a huge celebration for the Knicks, who defeated the Spurs 94-90 in Game 5 on Saturday, June 13, to win their first championship since 1973.
Following the historic win, Knicks owner James Dolan confirmed that his team has received an invitation from the White House, where they will meet with President Donald Trump.
“I received an invitation from the White House and I accepted it,” Dolan admitted in an interview on WFAN Sports Radio on Wednesday, June 17.
“We still need to figure out the details,” he added.
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In a previous interview, Dolan revealed that he required his team members to make every effort to abstain from sex in order to gain an “advantage” in athletic competitions.
“There was this idea that maybe it would be a good idea to not have sex for the next 10 weeks,” Dolan said on the Monday, June 15 episode of “The Roommates Show,” a podcast hosted by Knicks forward Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart. “You don’t have to give up sex for the next 10 weeks. But just like the Spartans, you know what the Spartans are? They denied themselves, right? That gives them the upper hand. Get the upper hand.”
he continued. “Go home, talk to your wives, don’t tell them you won’t have sex, don’t tell them it was my idea, but let them know what this is going to be, what your commitments are going to be, and what sacrifices they’re going to have to make too.”
