WWE's Danhausen is Best for Business After Lifting ‘Knicks Curse' in NBA

Many New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks may have no clue who Danhausen is, but the entertaining WWE star may show the entire world how effective his “curse” powers are last night, and his employer how much value he possesses.

For those unaware, the professional wrestling star, best known for his phrase, “You are cursed,” makes regular appearances on WWE programming, sometimes wrestling, and other times getting involved in schtick in the ring, backstage, or other wrestlers’ homes.

He appeared at WrestleMania 42, driving a vehicle dubbed the “Hausenmobile” down the ramp to the ring, joining legend John Cena and Mike “The Miz” Mizanin in the ring for a hilarious segment. A group of little people, whom Michael Cole referred to as “midgets” during commentary, wore similar face paint and attire to their leader, Danhausen, and joined in the fun.

However, ahead of anything ever happening at WWE’s WrestleMania, he made a surprise appearance on ESPN to confront Stephen A. Smith over his attitude, and promptly cursed him and his favorite NBA team: the New York Knicks.

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Danhausen jokingly demanded some money from Smith to lift the curse, but Smith refused to pay. However, a professional wrestling media outlet, BodySlam.net, recently had someone willing to fork over the money.

On Thursday evening, the outlet revealed that their host and producer paid for a Cameo video, in which Danhausen said he would lift the curse on the Knicks. The newest WWE star did exactly that and put the curse on the Hawks.

That video hit social media before Game 6 on Thursday in Atlanta, and the result couldn’t have played out more perfectly for the Knicks, Danhausen, and WWE.

New York stormed out to a whopping halftime lead and was up nearly 50 points at some parts of the first half. They ultimately claimed a Game 6 blowout win on the road, 140-89.

The Knicks won their series and moved on to the second round of the NBA Playoffs as the first team in the Eastern Conference to do so. They’ll await either the Boston Celtics or the Philadelphia 76ers, neither of whom has been cursed by Danhausen like the Hawks were yet.

However, one doesn’t have to believe in curses to believe in the power this gives WWE and Danhausen moving forward. He’s now created a massive crossover moment involving WWE and professional sports at a time when it is greatly needed, thanks to the partnership between ESPN and WWE.

With ESPN’s subscription-based app carrying huge WWE events, promotional interviews with WWE stars on ESPN shows, and rumors that Stephen A. Smith could become part of some WWE storyline, this Knicks blowout couldn’t have arrived at a better time. It also allows banter on social media and potentially more Danhausen involvement in random ESPN segments or moments down the road.

WWE needs to lean hard into moments like this, and so far, it appears Danhausen knows exactly how to play them up, providing immense value as a modern-day “gimmick” character as the company seeks ways to grow following John Cena’s retirement tour.

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This story was originally published May 1, 2026 at 11:30 AM.