There’s always been a big chance that Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift being courtside at an NBA playoff game would attract a lot of attention.
Nevertheless, Kelce ensured that everyone knew what the night was really about after the last buzzer.
Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals saw the Knicks spending the night in Cleveland before walking out with a 121-108 win, increasing their lead in the series.
Kelce had the whole thing covered and was helping the hometown team, the Cavaliers, with cheering, with Swift right by his side.
Travis Kelce on Taking Taylor Swift to NBA Games
GettyTaylor Swift reacts beside Travis Kelce during a viral courtside moment at Cavaliers-Knicks Game 3 as the Chiefs star drew attention from fans
On the latest episode of New Heights, the podcast Kelce hosts with his brother Jason, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end broke down why he brought Swift to the game at Rocket Arena in Cleveland on May 23.
“This wasn’t me trying to persuade Taylor into being a Cleveland sports fan with me,” Kelce said. “This was me just having a fun date night knowing that I love going to basketball games. We actually tried to go to a game in New York but I was stuck in Kansas City.”
He had been open about wanting to take Swift to Madison Square Garden for a while. That never happened, so Cleveland became their first NBA outing together. And for Kelce, the reasoning behind all of it goes beyond just one sport.
“I love bringing her into the sports world that I appreciate. That’s why you’ve seen us at the U.S. Open tennis matches, other baseball games, and the Guards vs. the Yanks two years ago. I just enjoy bringing her to experience a lot of the fun that I’ve always known to have.”
Why the Night Stood Out Beyond the Final Score
Kelce grew up about 20 minutes from Rocket Arena. This was not just any playoff game for him, it was his hometown team in the Eastern Conference Finals. So when the Cavs were down ten points in the fourth quarter, he did what felt natural.
He grabbed a beer, chugged it on the jumbotron, and tried to wake the crowd up. On the podcast, he was pretty proud of how it went: “It was a classy chug, Jason. Didn’t spill one drop. Didn’t crush the can. I’m on hardwood floor of an NBA game, could’ve got messy. It was a smooth, classy chug to get the people going.”
The Cavs still lost. But what Kelce made clear this week is that none of this, not the courtside seats, not the camera moments, was ever about optics.
He just loves sports, he loves sharing that with Swift, and that part came through just fine.
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