Knicks vs. Pacers Has All the Elements of a Great Series

“I’ll be back. You don’t wanna see me again,” Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton told a crowd at Madison Square Garden last summer in a scripted WWE battle with the New York Knicks’ Jalen Brunson.

This was just weeks after the Pacers booted the injury-addled Knicks from the Eastern Conference semifinals.

And now New York will see Haliburton again — in the playoffs, at MSG.

The Eastern Conference Finals kick off tonight with Game 1 between the Knicks and Pacers. And it’s a rivalry that is just perfect in so many ways.

A Long Rivalry

The Knicks-Pacers rivalry goes deep. For those who weren’t around at the time, the 1990s NBA wasn’t just Michael Jordan versus the rest. The playoffs were layered with intense battles, perhaps none greater than Indiana versus New York.

These were two physical teams: Anthony Mason and Charles Oakley for the Knicks, and the two Davises for the Pacers — Antonio and Dale — punishing forwards who made every trip to the paint a war of attrition.

Sure, Reggie Miller was a sharpshooter from three. But this was an era of going hard in the paint — not chucking threes from 25 feet out. Games were won with elbows, rebounds, and fourth-quarter grit, not just spacing and pace.

The Knicks and Pacers met five times in the playoffs in the 1990s, with New York claiming three of those series. It was a blood feud filled with spectacle — from Miller’s “8 points in 9 seconds” shocker and courtside battles with Spike Lee, to Larry Johnson’s “4-point play” in 1999.

The Villain: Tyrese Haliburton Is the New Reggie Miller

Spike is still around — and will certainly be courtside at some point in the series. (He’s at the Cannes Film Festival in France this week.)

And while Miller retired from basketball two decades ago, he’s been reincarnated as Haliburton — a clutch guard not only hated by opposing fans, but one who relishes in it.

Haliburton is using the Hater Aid to fuel his stellar play in the 2025 NBA Playoffs. After being named, unofficially, the most overrated player in the NBA, he’s hit two clutch game-winners in these playoffs to power Indiana into the conference finals.

Thirsty Franchises — and the Ultimate Venue

These aren’t just two good teams squaring off in the conference finals. The Knicks and Pacers are two proud franchises from basketball-mad places — and both are starving for a title.

Indiana is arguably the cradle of American basketball. From high school gyms to Hoosiers lore, the sport is part of the state’s DNA. And while the Pacers have a passionate fan base and a deep playoff history, they’ve only reached the NBA Finals once — in 2000 — and have never hoisted the Larry O’Brien Trophy.

New York, meanwhile, is the global capital of basketball culture. From Rucker Park to Archbishop Molloy and Lincoln High School — this city has produced some of the game’s greatest talent. And Madison Square Garden, the “World’s Most Famous Arena,” remains the greatest stage in all of sports.

But despite the city’s rich basketball heritage, the Knicks haven’t won a title since 1973. Their last Finals appearance was in 1999. That’s a quarter-century of waiting — and decades more of frustration, false starts, and rebuilds.

Few had the Knicks or Pacers making it this far. But here they are. Two proud franchises, two passionate fanbases, both believing their time is now. Tonight, one takes a step closer — at MSG.