Tyrese Haliburton Went From Burying The Knicks To Immediately Delivering A Clean Shot To Knicks Super Fan Ben Stiller

Gregory Shamus. Getty Images.

First off, congrats to the Pacers for an incredible season and their first Finals appearance in 25 years. That's pretty cool. To be on the wrong side of one of the closest sweeps in ECF Finals history last year and then to come back this season and finally break through by beating a healthy higher seed is what sports and the NBA playoffs are all about.

I also think there's still a bit of denial going on regarding what the Pacers are doing. Not just these playoffs, but really in all of 2025. I'm not sure enough people realize or are willing to accept that since January 1st, the Pacers have the 2nd best record in the entire NBA (including playoffs).

1. OKC: 53-13 (41-9 regular season, 12-4 playoffs)

2. IND: 46-18 (34-14 regular season, 12-4 playoffs)

Given that we are now on June 1st, that's a pretty decent sample size if you ask me. And while they will be HEAVY underdogs against the Thunder in the Finals, if you find yourself sitting there thinking that what the Pacers have done this run is "fake" or whatever, well then you my friend, are living in denial. So what if it's not the Celtics or the Knicks or the Cavs or whoever. The Pacers are not only playing the best basketball of any of those teams, but they beat 2 of the 3 to get where they currently are. They are as worthy a Finals representative as anyone who could have come out of the East, and they have earned your respect.

Part of that respect of course comes from the play of Tyrese Haliburton who has been pretty incredible these entire playoffs, and was especially awesome when it came time to close things out and officially send the Knicks to Cancun last night

Haliburton's 4th quarter was the final nail in the coffin. A near perfect 11/3/4 on 5-6 (1-1) with 0 TOs and a +10 in his 8 minutes, his stretch of like 3-4 straight floaters is what essentially punched the Pacers ticket to the Finals and prevented any sort of wild late game Knicks comeback, and it's that type of close that you want/expect from your franchise player in that moment. When something like a Finals trip is on the line and all it requires is the best player to step on throats and kill the opponent, that's exactly what Haliburton did over the final 8 minutes of the 4th.

Between his heroics in Game 1, the historic dominance of Game 4, I think you could make the claim that Tyrese Haliburton buried the Knicks in this series. The thing is, he didn't just stop there.

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Wooo buddy, that's gotta sting. I'm sure this is where butthurt Knicks fans will talk about Haliburton being "corny" or whatever the fuck, but that's just their hurt talking. This is exactly why sports are the best. When you win, you can talk your shit to any and every one and all they can do is take it or cry about it on the internet. Ben Stiller thought he did something with his tweet, Haliburton came out and buried the Knicks and decided he wasn't done. That's elite shit talking if you ask me.

And here's the thing about Haliburton in this series. We has numerous occasions where he opened himself up to potentially getting DRAGGED for his actions. The early choke sign in Game 1? If they lost that game (or the series), I don't think he ever lives that down for the rest of his career. That choking photo is now a part of his legacy, but in the worst ways.

Showing up to Game 6 in all black, a move that we've seen backfire before from teams

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was another instance where, if things go poorly, Haliburton would never hear the end of it.

So what does he do? He finds a way to close out Game 1 and prevent that disaster. Then last night he did the same. Sorry, I have no choice but to respect that. If you do something that opens yourself up to be dragged to all hell, but then you come out and back it up? That's all fair game in my opinion. Talk whatever shit you want. That's what comes with winning, and the only ones who have a problem with that are fans of a team that probably just got worked by that player. 

Just look at the replies/quotes to his tweet and see how Knicks fans are handling it. A whole lot of crying about "wait until SGA busts that ass!!" and things along those lines. Tough scene if you ask me. 

My advice to Haliburton for the Finals would be to probably avoid antics like this. The Thunder ARE NOT the Knicks. You don't need to poke that bear. Just go out there, take care of the basketball, make your open looks, and don't let their whistle get in your head and knock you off your game. Sounds much easier on paper than it does in practice, but if the Pacers want to have a chance in these Finals, that's really their only path.