A 1973 Knicks Banner and a Friendship That Never Faded

Two retired New York City sanitation workers brought a very old banner to a very big parade. Doug Bertinelli, 71, and Pat Hannafin, 70, have been best friends since middle school. They first carried their homemade bedsheet banner at a Knicks celebration back in 1973 — the last time New York's basketball team won a championship. More than five decades later, they dusted it off and carried it again at a ticker-tape parade through Manhattan on Thursday.

The two men met in 1969 as middle school students on Staten Island. They were teammates on a basketball team at Blessed Sacrament Roman Catholic Church, and in their very first season together, they won a championship. The next year, they waited outside Madison Square Garden overnight just to buy tickets to watch the Knicks win theirs. Even as young teens, they were die-hard fans.

By 1973, Bertinelli and Hannafin were high school seniors. Bertinelli worked part-time as a grocery store cashier and stock boy to earn money for tickets. They went to the Garden together and watched the Knicks win their second title. After the win, Hannafin made a simple banner out of a bedsheet and a magic marker to carry at a celebration in the city.

As the years passed, the Knicks stopped winning, and the banner got tucked away in Hannafin's attic. But the two friends never stopped cheering for their team. Even when the Knicks struggled, Bertinelli and Hannafin stayed in touch and kept talking about basketball. Their friendship was just as strong as their love for the game.

The two men went to St. Peter's Boys High School together on Staten Island. After graduation, they both got jobs with the New York City Sanitation Department, though at different locations. Hannafin worked early-morning shifts in Manhattan, while Bertinelli became a supervisor on Staten Island. When their paths crossed at work, Bertinelli would make sure they were put on the same route.

Over the years, Hannafin became a huge New York sports fan. He collected memorabilia and was known for making and holding signs at games. He describes himself as a hoarder of sports stuff — and Bertinelli wasn't at all surprised that his old friend had kept the banner for more than 50 years. That kind of dedication is just part of who Hannafin is.

Bertinelli now lives in Barnegat, New Jersey, which is more than an hour's drive from Hannafin's home on Staten Island. Still, he didn't mind making the trip just to watch the Knicks lose Game 3 of the playoffs together. "It was like old times," Bertinelli said. "Even though they lost, we ordered pizza." For these two, being together mattered more than the score.

On the day of the parade, they took the Staten Island Ferry to Manhattan — just like they used to as teenagers. Hannafin wiped the dust off the old banner and said that moment was the highlight for him. The two men agreed the celebration felt even bigger this time around. "We can't see each other that often now," Hannafin said. "But 53 years later, we're still attached to the Knicks."