Everything’s bigger in Texas, but it’s better in the Big Apple.
Knicks fans dunked on the rival Spurs’ hometown ahead of the NBA Finals — saying they remember the Alamo but little else about the fire ant-infested, dust trap of a city.
Orange-and-blue fanatics on barstools and behind bar counters trash-talked the second-rate Texas city that has “nothing going on” beyond the Spurs’ postseason run, which has set them on a collision course with the Knicks.
“I don’t think most New Yorkers know anything about San Antonio,” said Bayside resident James Forte ahead of the Finals Game 1 showdown in Texas.
“I mean I’ll quote [Charles Barkley], ‘There is some big women in San Antonio and they love churros and that’s the only thing they got going for them.’”
Barkley is well known for poking fun at San Antonio women and has needled the city for a lack of tourist attractions, according to reports.
But he’s shown love toward the city’s churros.
Manhattan doorman Charlie Kelly, 66, said he didn’t think it was fair to compare San Antonio to the City that Never Sleeps.
“[Wednesday]’s watch party at MSG has 117,000 people on the wait list,” the Fresh Meadows resident joked. “That’s more than the population of San Antonio.”
While San Antonio’s population is more than 1 million, many locals said the city is small time.
“Unbelievable energy coming from these Knicks fans. I don’t think there’s that kind of energy coming out of San Antonio,” said John Ryan, owner of One Station Plaza. “They’re like a nothing part of Texas. I’ve never given them one thought.”
“There is nothing going on in San Antonio compared to what’s going on at MSG [Wednesday],” added Dan Geoghan, who is the general manager of Bourbon Street in Bayside.
The Knicks last reached the NBA Finals in 1999 when they lost to the Spurs in a five-game series.
“They did beat us that last time and Texas doesn’t exactly love New York City,” Bayside retiree Joe Cass, 69, said while having a drink at Bourbon Street.
“Plus, they’re not really known for letting things slide so when we beat them we’ll be on their list along with ‘Remember the Alamo.’”
The Spurs – known for Hall of Fame players like Tim Duncan and David Robinson – were first part of San Antonio in 1973 under the now-defunct American Basketball Association after spending several seasons in Dallas under a different name.
The Spurs joined the NBA after the ABA folded years later, according to the Texas State Historical Society.
The Knicks have rattled off series wins against teams in Atlanta, Philadelphia and Cleveland en route to a magical playoff run that has galvanized Gotham into a blue and orange sea of excitement.
The championship run comes after years in which the Knicks were an irrelevant part of the NBA and struggled to show postseason promise.