Ex-NYC Mayor Bloomberg congratulates new friend Knicks guard Jose Alvarado after viral collision in Game 3

Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg praised his “new friend” Knicks guard Jose Alvarado for the team’s historic comeback Wednesday night, playfully announcing they had a “smoother” encounter than their viral run-in at Game 3.Bloomberg shared a picture of him and Alvarado that was snapped while they chatted courtside before Game 4.

“Our second meeting went a little smoother.Huge congrats to my new friend [Alvarado] and the [Knicks] on their historic comeback.

Don’t ever count NYC out.One more to go.

Let’s Go Knicks!” Bloomberg captioned the post.Alvarado and Bloomberg had an uncomfortably close first encounter on Monday.During Game 3, Alvarado flew into celebrity row while trying to retrieve a loose ball — and landed right on top of Bloomberg.The 84-year-old looked a little shaken up, but appeared otherwise unscathed.Alvarado put his arms around Bloomberg and patted him on the chest after the collision, seemingly attempting to apologize before diving back into the game. To make matters worse, the Knicks fell to the Spurs within the hour, shattering their 13-game win streak.Some fans suggested that Bloomberg was “the good luck charm” whose sheer presence secured Wednesday’s come-from-behind victory.“Mikes leadership rubbed off on Jose!!” one woman commented.“Craziest full circle ever,” another added.“Still my mayor,” one person concluded.Current New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani attended Game 3 with a gaggle of Empire State lawmakers in the standing-room section.He was spotted cheering on the Knicks during Game 4 at a bar in Queens....