Stars turn out for Madison Square Garden's 1st NBA Finals in 27 years

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MANILA, Philippines — The world's most famous arena was an explosive party after hosting the NBA Finals for the first time in nearly three decades.

The New York City faithful have been celebrating for weeks with the Eastern Conference Championship win of hometown team the Knicks, who last featured in the Finals in 1999.

The San Antonio Spurs defeated defending champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, in a thrilling seven-game series over in the West. This win set up a recreation of the 1999 match-up, where the Spurs won its first-ever championship.

Because the Spurs had the second-most amount of wins during the regular season, the first two games were held in their home court, the Frost Bank Center. This means Knicks fans had to wait a little longer for the Finals to return to Madison Square Garden.

Related: Trump booed at NBA Finals game in New York

The wait was certainly worth it as the Knicks defeated the Spurs in the first two games, ensuring that the latter would feel double the pressure given the raucous environment of the Manhattan venue, which has startled teams regardless of the Knicks' season performances.

Just like the first two games, it was a physical match-up between both teams, which ended in a hard-fought victory for the Spurs who avoided going down to a 0-3 deficit.

Celebrity watch

While it did not end favorably for Knicks fans, even their most star-studded supporters showed up to welcome the NBA Finals back to Madison Square Garden.

Security was on high alert due to the attendance of US President Donald Trump, a former New York resident, although he was emphatically booed by arena attendees before the game even began.

Trump, who was seated beside Knicks owner James Dolan, became the first sitting US president to ever attend an NBA Finals game.

Other political figures at the game were New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani, who previously "repealed kids' bedtimes" so children could watch the games, and previous mayor Mike Bloomberg.

Director Spike Lee and comedian Ben Stiller (alongside wife Christine Taylor) were ever-present as long-time Knicks fans; both of them were also at the 1999 Finals.

More star New York fans in attendance were comedians Larry David, Jon Stewart, Chris Rock, Tina Fey, Dave Chappelle, and Tracy Morgan, "Law and Order" stars Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni, rappers Jay-Z and Fat Joe, actors Timothee Chalamet and Michael Imperioli, and director Josh Safdie.

Knicks legends also came out to support the current roster, with Walt "Clyde" Frazier and Bill Bradley primary among them. The two were part of the teams that won the Knicks' sole NBA championships in 1970 and 1973.

Other past Knicks players watching in the arena were Patrick Ewing, Jeremy Lin, Hubert Davis, Allan Houston, John Starks, Larry Johnson, Kiki VanDeWeghe, and Tim Thomas.

New York athletes outside of basketball were also present, like baseball star Derek Jeter and NFL star Eli Manning. Super Bowl-winning coach Jimmy Johnson was present, though he had never played for or led a New York team.

During the half-time, New York-native rapper Cardi B performed her songs "Bodgeda Baddie" and "Bodak Yellow" (and Trump wasn't at his seat for them, likely because the rapper is critical of the president's policies).

RELATED: Spurs avoid 0-3 hole, nip Knicks