Embarrassed Jon Jones looks back at shooting hoops at New York Knicks' MSG ahead of UFC 309

Jon Jones will be stepping inside a cage situated at the nucleus of MSG tomorrow. However, he recently visited the renowned venue to take in the action of another sport. The reigning UFC heavyweight champion was at the world's most famous arena to take in a New York Knicks game.

Not only did he observe the basketball action at Madison Square Garden, Jones also took to the court and met some of the team's players like Josh Hart. MMA's GOAT was given a special jersey with 'Jones 309' emblazoned on the back to celebrate his big UFC main event bout this weekend.

Jones also took to the free throw line to showcase his skills on the court or lack thereof, with some fans teasing him in the comment section that he picked the right sport to become a professional in. Taking to the ESPN MMA Instagram comment section that posted the footage of him at the Knicks game, Jon Jones wrote:

"Thank you guys for not showing what actually happened"

[Image Courtesy: @espn comment section on Instagram]

Check out the IG post of Jones at the Knicks game that he commented on below

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Jon Jones and his MSG assignment for tomorrow

While Jon Jones was all fun and games watching the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, that will not be the case when he is locked in the cage on Saturday night. Jones will be looking to make his long-awaited first title defense which has been over twenty months in the making since capturing the strap against Ciryl Gane at UFC 285.

The 37-year-old was supposed to clash with Stipe Miocic this time last November until a pectoral injury put Jones on the shelf for a lengthy recovery period. The venue, the month, and the opponent are all the same but the landscape is a bit different with interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall waiting in the wings as a replacement opponent, should either Stipe Miocic or Jon Jones drop out.

'Bones' is regarded as the greatest light heavyweight the company has ever seen and is also seen as the outright greatest of all time in the sport of mixed martial arts. This opportunity to face the most accomplished heavyweight champion in UFC history, Miocic, is the kind of moment that could even further galvanize an already rock-solid legacy in combat sports.

This UFC 309 headliner has to be a huge moment for the Rochester native and would presumably have compounded localized importance for an athlete from New York State to compete under the bright lights at this venue someday.