New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani signed an executive order on June 1 temporarily repealing bedtimes during the Knicks’ NBA Finals run so children can stay up to watch games, including school-night matchups.
On June 1, Mayor Zohran Mamdani didn’t just talk about the Knicks’ NBA Finals run—he changed the rules that govern how late some of the city’s youngest fans are allowed to stay awake.
Mamdani signed an executive order “repeal[ing]” bedtimes during the series. declaring they “should not impede the ability of New York’s Cutest to cheer for the Knicks and watch every second.” The move was staged in a signing ceremony that included a group of children dressed in Knicks colors. who “signed” the order with their handprints.
“This was not one of them,” Mamdani said in a post on X, adding “Go Knicks.”
The games themselves are scheduled to start at 8:30 p.m. ET. Every game in the series between the Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs is set for that time. including matchups that land on school nights. Games 1. 3 and 4 are on school nights. and if the series reaches a Game 6—played as the Knicks try to win the best-of-seven—Mamdani’s order would extend to that school-night scenario as well.
Mamdani’s decision arrives with the city’s attention pinned to a familiar longing: the Knicks reaching the Finals again. It is the first time the Knicks have made the finals since 1999. when they were bested by the Tim Duncan and David Robinson-led Spurs in five games. That 27-year gap has turned the current run into a rare. citywide event—basketballs fans packed into the same frame of excitement. even as the schedules get tighter.
The NBA Finals moment has also been part of a larger media and sports conversation in New York. Mike Greenberg, host of ESPN’s “Get Up,” previously said, “the Knicks being in the Finals is bigger in New York than the Super Bowl.”
The order changes more than a nightly routine for a specific set of families—it shows how deeply this postseason has pulled everyday life into its orbit. For New York’s children who are old enough to care but young enough to be bound by bedtime rules. the mayor’s executive order effectively redraws the line between school-day discipline and game-day devotion.
Zohran Mamdani New York City Knicks NBA Finals San Antonio Spurs executive order bedtimes Mike Greenberg ESPN Get Up