The NBA Finals had barely ended when one of New York’s most devoted fans posted a throwback photo of the city’s newest champion. Mariska Hargitay, known to millions as Captain Olivia Benson on Law & Order: SVU, didn’t wait long to celebrate Jalen Brunson and the Knicks’ title-clinching win over the San Antonio Spurs.
On Instagram, Hargitay shared a childhood picture of Brunson with the message: “You found a way” — written in orange letters outlined in blue, the Knicks’ colors. Her caption went further: “And you lead the way for so many. Congratulations to you all and deepest thanks.”
The post quickly drew reactions from fans, who matched Hargitay’s energy. One wrote, “Special Knicktims Unit!” while another mashed up the actress and the Knicks star’s names into “MARKNICKSA HARGITAY.” A third fan said, “I just know you’re crying those happy tears.”
This kind of cross-industry admiration didn’t happen overnight. Hargitay has been a fixture at Knicks games all season — regular season and playoffs alike. She sat courtside at Madison Square Garden for Game 4 of the Finals, wearing a custom “Stevie Knicks” T-shirt next to Taylor Swift, who wore the same shirt. The design came from Alana Haim of the band HAIM.
Brunson opened up about his friendship with Hargitay last month on The Roommates Show, the podcast he hosts with Knicks teammate Josh Hart. Brunson admitted to getting starstruck the first time they met — something that doesn’t happen often for an NBA star. “I saw her and I was like, ‘Oh, (wow),’” Brunson said during a May 2025 episode. “Then, the first time we met, it was awesome, we talked and everything.”
Hart, never one to miss a chance to joke, pointed out that Brunson hugged Hargitay after a tough 108-102 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on April 11. “I’ve seen you not hug your wife after some losses,” Hart quipped.
Brunson traced his own fandom of Law & Order: SVU back to his father, former Knicks star and current assistant coach Rick Brunson. “I remember my dad always watching the show and you just hear the iconic (theme song) ‘don-don’ all the time. I always found myself watching the show. Honestly the older I got, the more I watched, the more I see now I’m like, ‘I’ve seen that episode,’ I’ve seen so many different episodes,” Brunson shared.
Actor Ben Stiller, a guest on that same podcast episode, noted that celebrities around the league are jealous of the special treatment Brunson gets from Hargitay after games.
This isn’t the first time Hargitay has shown up big for Brunson. When he was named an All-Star earlier this year, she recorded a custom video for him — “one captain to another,” she said, a nod to her 27-season run as Captain Benson. The Knicks’ official social media account posted the video in February with the caption: “as you can see, @jalenbrunson1 and Mariska Hargitay are BIG fans of each other.”
Brunson summed it up simply after seeing that video: “That’s my favorite person ever.”
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