<p>"<strong>This is our season, this is our time. We're going all the way</strong>," said the 53-year-old, who sported glittery shoes with a basketball design, a large medallion with the team's emblem, and the increasingly ubiquitous, blue Knicks cap.</p><p>She spoke to AFP outside Madison Square Garden, the home of the Knicks, where fans gathered Wednesday to watch a video feed of the first match against the San Antonio Spurs, being played in Texas.</p><p>Graham said the Knicks' successful run - reaching their first NBA Finals since 1999 - has brought people together in New York.</p><p>"<strong>New Yorkers can be rude - everybody's in a rush, everybody's pushing - but when people see you with the gear on, it's like: 'Let's go Knicks!</strong>'" she said.</p><p>As excitement builds around the team that last won the NBA Finals in 1973, New York is awash in the Knicks' blue and orange colors.</p><p>At subway stations, US actor and comedian Tracy Morgan's voice booms out over the speakers with a rallying cry of "<strong>Orange and blue skies, baby!</strong>" and "<strong>Go New York, Go!</strong>"</p><p>Meanwhile, New York's Mayor Zohran Mamdani has signed a tongue-in-cheek executive order "temporarily repealing bedtimes" to encourage children to watch the late-night games.</p>

'So excited'

<p>"<strong>You notice a lot of good energy knowing that everybody's rallying behind the team,</strong>" said Damani Darling, a 22-year-old communications student.</p><p>He admitted to not being a loyal Knicks follower but said he backed New York sports - especially as the city's last major victory was the Giants' Super Bowl triumph in 2012.</p><p>"<strong>It feels good that we have a team that actually could win something for us,</strong>" said Darling.</p><p>Several fans mingled Wednesday by a subway stop near Madison Square Garden that city officials have painted blue and orange to honor the Knicks.</p><p>Professional artist Katie Thomas, 29, sat nearby with a friend, both drawing the scene in their sketchbooks.</p><p>"<strong>It's great to see the city just so excited and all the fanfare,</strong>" Thomas, wearing a Knicks cap, told AFP.</p><p>"<strong>People are literally around a subway station right now instead of going through it. They're taking pictures for each other and having cute little moments,</strong>" she added.</p>

'Buzz'

<p>Many Knicks fans will be watching the NBA Finals at watch parties before the team plays in New York next week.</p><p>Madison Square Garden's event sold out in an hour. Other supporters will watch from outside the venue -- something New York police had initially blocked after unrest among fans following a Knicks game in May.</p><p>Local bars, many adorned in blue and orange flags and balloons, are also hoping to cash in on the excitement.</p><p>"<strong>There's a buzz around the place, you can feel it,</strong>" said John Crombie, a bartender at the Irish pub Jack Doyle's, which is hosting watch parties.</p><p>"<strong>It's great. Bars are packed, restaurants are packed. Everyone's doing well,</strong>" the 34-year-old added.</p><p>At another pub, a staff member told AFP they were fully booked for all the Knicks' matches, saying the phone had been "ringing off the hook."</p>