The Madness Is Back: Knicks Pacers NBA Playoff Rivalry Goes Nuclear
Blood. Sweat. Buzzer beaters. Brass knuckles?
Welcome back to the Knicks Pacers NBA Playoff Rivalry, where basketball meets drama, and every game feels like a heavyweight title fight.
Forget finesseโthis isnโt just about Xs and Os. Itโs about vengeance. Payback. Legacy. And with the winner of this Eastern Conference Finals punching a ticket to the NBA Finals, everything is on the line.
Madison Square Garden wonโt just be loudโitโll be shaking. And starting Wednesday night, the ghosts of playoff past are about to get some company.
Brunson and Haliburton: The New Kings of Chaos
Letโs rewind to last summer. WWE took over Madison Square Garden for a wild event, but two unexpected stars stole the spotlight. Jalen Brunson stepped into the ring with a steel chair. Tyrese Haliburton came armed with brass knuckles. No, this isnโt fantasy. It really happened.
Was it staged? Sure. But the heat between these two? Thatโs as real as it gets.
Their beef is now front and center in what could be the biggest showdown in the entire NBA Playoffs. Haliburton torched the Knicks in last yearโs Game 7, scoring 26 points and helping Indiana shoot a ridiculous 67.1% from the fieldโan all-time playoff record. The Garden crowd was stunned. Haliburton grinned. And then he showed up to the postgame press conference wearing a Reggie Miller โchokeโ meme sweatshirt.
Brutal. Brilliant. Blasphemousโin the heart of New York.
Now, with revenge on the brain and the NBA Finals in sight, Brunson gets his chance to clap back.
History Repeatsโฆ with More Heat
If you think this is just another playoff series, you must be new here.
This is Round 9 of Knicks vs. Pacers in the NBA Playoffsโa rivalry thatโs defined generations. The first war started in 1993 with John Starks headbutting Reggie Miller, and it only escalated from there. Spike Lee. The choke sign. The Garden eruptions. Fights, fouls, and fury.
Now weโve got Karl-Anthony Towns, Brunson, and Haliburton stepping into that legacy with a shot at the Finals.
Indiana leads the all-time playoff series 5-3, but when it comes to Eastern Conference Finals matchups, the Knicks have the edge: 1994 and 1999 both ended in New York wins. But the last time they met at this stage in 2000? The Pacers went to the Finals.
This series could be a tie-breaker, and the most important one yet.
The Knicks Are Backโand Hungry
Nobody expected the Knicks to be here. Boston and Cleveland dominated the regular season headlines. But New York just knocked off the defending champs, and now theyโre riding a wave of momentum and magic.
This is their first trip to the East Finals in 25 years, and the city is buzzing. Everywhere you go, itโs โBrunson for MVP,โ โTowns is a beast,โ and โThis is the year!โ
Towns, acquired in a blockbuster deal with Minnesota, has been electricโespecially against Indiana. He averaged 30.3 points and 12 boards per game in their regular season meetings. If he brings that same heat, this series might swing in New Yorkโs favor fast.
But donโt expect him to look ahead.
โWeโve got to get there first,โ Towns said. โStep by step.โ
Still, Knicks fans canโt help but dream of a Finals showdown with Townsโ old team, the Timberwolves.
Indianaโs Inferno: From 10-15 to Unstoppable
If any team is hotter than New York, itโs Indiana.
After a disastrous 10-15 start to the season, theyโve flipped the script in shocking fashionโgoing 48-19 since, including the playoffs. Coach Rick Carlisle has this group running, gunning, and blowing teams off the court.
They just embarrassed the top-seeded Cavaliers in five games, and Haliburton is leading the charge like a man possessed.
The Pacers have speed, swagger, and a serious chip on their shoulder. Theyโre not just here to playโtheyโre here to take the Garden by stormโฆ again.
Reggie Miller Returnsโฆ As a Reminder
Every Knicks fan remembers Reggie Miller. Heโs the villain in their nightmares. The man who dropped 8 points in 9 seconds. The ultimate Garden enemy.
And guess what? Heโll be right there on the sidelines, calling the games for TNT.
The symbolism couldnโt be louder. This is full-circle drama, the kind you couldnโt script better if you tried.
And donโt be surprised if he stirs the pot.
This Ainโt Friendly
Sure, Brunson and Haliburton were teammates on Team USA at the 2023 World Cup. And sure, there are smiles in warmups.
But make no mistake: this is war.
Brunson remembers how Haliburton flexed in the Garden. Knicks fans havenโt forgotten the sweatshirt. The trolling. The swagger.
โHe played well in the Garden,โ Brunson said. โBut now weโre moving on.โ
Well, theyโre not. Not really. Not until someone wins four games and sends the other team packing.
What to Watch For
Towns vs. Indianaโs Frontcourt
Indiana doesnโt have a big who can match Towns in strength and skill. Expect New York to feed him early and often.
Haliburtonโs Speed vs. Knicksโ Defense
Can New York slow down the game and avoid getting blitzed in transition? If not, it could get ugly.
Bench Battles and Role Players
The stars will shine, but whoever gets better production from their second unit could steal a game or two.
MSG Crowd Factor
The Garden will be insane. Noise. Energy. Pressure. How Indiana handles that could be the key to Game 1.
Prediction? Pain.
This isnโt going to be pretty.
Itโs going to be loud. Emotional. Gritty. And possibly historic.
The Knicks want their first Finals trip since 1999. The Pacers want to end their own drought and get revenge for decades of heartbreak. Someoneโs season will end in agony. Someoneโs dreams will come true.
And when itโs all said and done, this rivalryโthis Knicks Pacers NBA Playoff Rivalryโwill have added another unforgettable chapter.
Cheapest Tickets at Madison Square Garden already sell for $ 965 today on the resell market. Just to compare: The cheapest ticket for the Thunder โ Wolves Game was $ 95 on Tuesday in Oklahoma.
So you see: New York has playoff-fever today. The whole city is going crazy today. Everybody wants the Knicks to win โ and advance in a Championship final with the Thunder!
