Someone Asked Spike Lee If Timothée Chalamet Could Be His ‘Successor As The Knicks' Celebrity Super Fan,’ And His Answer Was So On Brand

Spike Lee and Timothée Chalamet split image
(Image credit: ESPN)

Celebrities, they're just like us. They also enjoy the NBA, but when a superfan like Spike Lee wants to see the New York Knicks, he can afford the premium seats that most of us salary workers couldn't afford. He's long been synonymous with courtside fandom, but so are many other stars. With Timothée Chalamet making headlines during this past playoff run, is it time for Lee to pass the torch?

As Chalamet made headlines this year for attending Knicks games and his girlfriend, Kylie Jenner, supposedly being a good luck charm for the team, Spike Jones was asked about the actor during a TikTok interview with First Take. Specifically, he was asked if Chalamet could take up the job of being the biggest celebrity superfan of the Knicks once Jones steps away, and I'm not surprised by his response:

Well, I got nothing but love for Timothée, but I’m not ready to hand the baton on. [laughs] When I leave this Earth, then he can have it, because, until then, they have to wheel me out in a wheelchair. I’m gonna be courtside.

I'm not surprised by Spike Lee's response in the slightest. He's been loyal to the franchise for decades and is only 68 years old. Just for context, he's been a season ticket holder since 1985 (via USA Today), which is a decade longer than Timotée Chalamet has lived. Sure, Chalamet got a rub getting called out by Pat McAfee, but he still has a long way to go before he can become "the" celebrity superfan of the New York Knicks.

While there are plenty of great Timothée Chalamet movies to give him a claim to the throne of biggest celebrity Knicks superfan, there are a ton of celebrities who regularly appear at games. Ben Stiller and Tracy Morgan are frequently at games, and Mariska Hargitay gets the special honor of hugging Jalen Brunson. If Chalamet wants the title of biggest fan, he may have to get in line behind several celebrities who also want that mantle.

Again, though, Spike Lee has no plans of going anywhere. This is a guy who treated a screening of Sinners like a Knicks game, so he carries his fandom with him even when he's outside of Madison Square Garden. As an NBA fan and Indiana Pacers fan familiar with his rivalry with Reggie Miller, I have a great respect for Lee and can say the Knicks fandom will have lost a great fan when he finally does stop coming to games.

That day is seemingly far off, however, especially with the New York Knicks in an advantageous position to win the Eastern Conference in the upcoming NBA season. Basketball fans believe the current lineup is the closest its been in decades to win a championship, which is something New Yorkers haven't seen from the franchise since 1973. We'll see if they can pull it off, and make both Spike Lee and Timothée Chalamet.

The official start of the NBA season doesn't happen until late October, so settle in with some football and some potentially cooler weather ahead of its arrival. We'll see how the Knicks do once the season actually starts, and if Spike Lee will reconsider keeping his mantle as the season goes on.

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Mick Joest
Content Producer

Mick Joest is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend with his hand in an eclectic mix of television goodness. Star Trek is his main jam, but he also regularly reports on happenings in the world of Star Trek, WWE, Doctor Who, 90 Day Fiancé, Quantum Leap, and Big Brother. He graduated from the University of Southern Indiana with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Radio and Television. He's great at hosting panels and appearing on podcasts if given the chance as well.

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