“I Asked Him for a Miracle” — Spike Lee Says Pope Leo XIV Is Pulling for the Knicks
Three Villanova Wildcats carried New York to its first NBA Finals since 1999 — and the most famous Wildcat of all is watching from Rome. The first American pope has quietly become the patron of American and European sport alike.
Thank you for reading! Letters from Leo is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Update — June 8, 2026: Spike Lee has confirmed he will wear the Pope Leo XIV jersey courtside tonight at Madison Square Garden for Game 3 of the NBA Finals — the number 14 Knicks jersey the pope signed for him at the Vatican. (Yahoo Sports has the details.)
Game 1 of the NBA Finals just finished last night, with the New York Knicks winning and now playing for a championship for the first time since 1999, chasing their first title since 1973.
Three of the men who carried them there learned the game at the same small Catholic university outside Philadelphia. Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges all wore Villanova blue before they pulled on Knicks orange, the heart of a roster New York has nicknamed the “Nova Knicks.”
The most famous Villanova graduate in the world is likely watching from Rome.
Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Prevost in the Chicago suburb of Dolton and a member of the Villanova Class of 1977, is, according to Spike Lee, a Knicks fan.
Lee made the claim after meeting the pope at the Vatican on November 15, 2025, when Leo gathered the film world for an audience on the power of cinema alongside Cate Blanchett, Monica Bellucci, and Viggo Mortensen.
The director handed Leo a custom jersey reading “Pope Leo” above the number 14, and said he asked the Holy Father for a miracle: a championship for New York.
Seven months later, with the Knicks three wins from the title, the request stopped sounding like a punch line.
Knicks supporters have found their own evidence. Here’s the latest.
