Monica McNutt is still a bit “mystified” about that unexpected, viral moment involving her and Taylor Swift during Game 4 of the NBA Finals. She recently shared her thoughts on the incident while appearing on “The Pivot” podcast, which is hosted by former NFL players Ryan Clark, Channing Crowder, and Fred Taylor. It seems she was caught on the Knicks radio broadcast making a remark about the pop superstar.
“Talk about a classic hot mic situation. We weren’t even live yet. I’m still puzzled and would really appreciate someone explaining how that reached so many people. But, let’s leave it at that,” McNutt remarked.
As fate would have it, she saw Swift seated courtside at Madison Square Garden and blurted out, “She’s not a Knicks fan. Get out of here, girl.”
After the game, which ended with OG Anunoby’s pivotal tip-in, McNutt was completely unaware that she had gone viral and was being targeted by Swift’s fans online.
She recounted a PR person telling her, “You know you’re trending right now?”
To which she replied, “Dude, did you see what just happened? I don’t care.”
On the podcast, McNutt defended her comments about Swift, describing them as merely a “throwaway comment.”
“You have to understand a bit of colloquialism when I said, ‘Girl, get out of here,’” she explained. “I just saw you at a Knicks game, and you weren’t wearing any Knicks gear! All the celebrity Knicks fans I know are decked out in blue and orange. So yeah, it was just a light comment. Congrats on your empire and fan base, but it didn’t mean much to me,” she added.
She continued, “People who haven’t been in our shoes don’t get how a hot mic situation works. If you’re not familiar with the way I speak, you might take that too seriously, but it really wasn’t a big deal. That’s on you, not me.”
Swift’s loyalty to the Knicks came under scrutiny when she was seen at Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals with then-fiancee Travis Kelce, a Cleveland native.
Then, during Game 4 of the NBA Finals, she appeared again, this time with the Haim sisters, sporting custom Knicks shirts that humorously read “Stevie Knicks.”
Aside from a brief encounter with a TMZ reporter looking to discuss her comment, no one else approached McNutt about the matter. However, she did express her apologies to Swift during an interview between Games 4 and 5.
“The internet isn’t my reality… I can simply shut off my phone and go on with life. I’m enjoying my best professional life right now. What are you all talking about?” she said.
Interestingly, someone did come to McNutt’s support amid the Knicks’ championship celebrations after their Game 5 victory in San Antonio. Jalen Brunson took the mic at MSG and stated, “I just want to say something to the Swifties: She’s a really good one, cut her some slack. It’s all good. I promise.”
McNutt expressed her surprise at Brunson defending her. “Jalen is incredibly thoughtful and an amazing leader. He really has a sense of what’s happening around him, and I didn’t expect that from him, but it was so cool,” she commented.
