As the last notes of the Knicks’ championship celebration faded and empty champagne bottles littered the visitors' locker room at Frost Bank Center, Deuce McBride had one thing on his mind: How to keep the party going.

While most of his teammates slept on the early-morning flight to Westchester County Airport on Sunday, June 14, McBride was hard at work locking down a place where the newly crowned NBA champions could celebrate into the night. One of the guard’s first texts went to Chef Josh Capon, whose members-only restaurant, Flyfish Club, had long served as a refuge where Knicks players could escape the outside noise.

Over the last year, Flyfish Club has become the go-to destination for athletes to savor their triumph on the biggest stage, from the Knicks and US Open women’s singles champ Elena Rybakina to the New Jersey 5s, the 2026 Major League Pickleball champions. Yet Capon was quick to point out that no two parties — or their lead-ups — are the same.

“They won the championship. I'm texting with [McBride] at three o'clock in the morning, and by 10 o'clock on Sunday night, that whole team rolled in one by one. And they had an incredible time.”

A dyed-in-the-wool Knicks fan, Capon was honored that his favorite team would choose his restaurant as the site of their post-championship festivities. There was just one problem: Nobody delivers on Sundays.

In a scene straight out of Hulu’s The Bear, Capon and his staff embarked on a mad dash across the Big Apple, making stops at various houses to secure the necessary product. Once the menu was set, the liquor was bought and a last-minute DJ was found, only then was Flyfish Club ready to open its doors.

Upon arriving at 141 E Houston St in Lower Manhattan, Knicks players weren’t greeted by screaming fans or the flashing lights of cameras — a welcome reprieve from the last 24 hours. To get into the sleek club tucked between two prewar walk-ups, guests needed to provide a secret code word.

“They came and went, and nobody even knew they were there,” Capon said of the Knicks. “It was really, really special, because these guys are in the limelight a lot, and sometimes you have to respect their privacy.

“I could very easily put an anonymous phone call out to Page Six if I wanted to, and say, ‘Hey, the Knicks are celebrating at Flyfish Club tonight.’ And every paparazzi's gonna grab a picture on their way in.

"It's never been that important to me. The relationships are a lot more important to me than selling it out, so to speak. I would never do that to anybody.”

After patrons enjoyed a lavish raw-bar spread while sipping Patrón El Alto and Ace of Spades champagne, the group eventually made its way down to the Cattail lounge.

When Drake and Future’s “Big Rings” from their What a Time to be Alive mixtape came on, Capon couldn’t help but smile as Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Josh Hart and McBride gathered in a circle, rapping along to every bar.

“We should all feel what a time it is to be alive, especially in New York,” Capon said. “And here I am hosting this celebration in my club. It was one of those pinch-me moments that was just unbelievable.”

Over the ensuing weeks, Capon would experience many more pinch-me moments while hosting several of the world's biggest tennis stars around the US Open.

The 54-year-old has regularly set up a concession stand at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center during the Grand Slam, while his business partner, David Rodolitz, is also “very dialed into” the tennis world.

“We had every tennis player coming in, from Brandon Nakashima to Frances Tiafoe, to Taylor Fritz and [Caroline] Wozniacki,” Capon explained. “And I think Flyfish Club kind of became the unofficial home of the US Open.”

Word of Flyfish Club eventually made its way to Rybakina, who decided it would be the perfect place to celebrate her 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 victory over Aryna Sabalenka in the 2026 US Open women's singles final.

“When she won, we got a call from her camp that she wanted to come in — 12 people at 10:30 at night,” Capon recalled. “So she rolled up with the trophy, which is pretty special.

"We hoisted it a little bit. [I] would have liked to drink some champagne out of it, but it's not the Stanley Cup. But she was lovely.”

While Capon has crossed paths with no shortage of stars over his career in the food industry, the renowned chef insists the most rewarding part of his job goes far beyond rubbing elbows with A-list celebrities.

“What I love about what I do is being able to provide an environment that's safe and secure, where players … can just let it all out, hang out, enjoy themselves with their friends and family,” he said.