Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton does his best Reggie Miller impression in Game 1 vs. Knicks
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton is mobbed by teammates as he makes a choking motion after hitting a shot against the Knicks at the end of regulation to tie Game 1 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden. Credit: AP/Adam Hunger
Tyrese Haliburton said he did not plan to do what he did. Instead, it came to him “in the moment.”
But there it was on Wednesday night, a recreation of fellow Pacer Reggie Miller’s infamous choke gesture during the 1994 playoffs against the Knicks.
Haliburton turned out not to be wrong about the Knicks in the end, as they lost Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, 138-135, in overtime in one of the most shocking late-game collapses in NBA playoff history.
But his move was premature. He thought he had made a three-point basket at the end of regulation time to give the Pacers a 126-125 victory after they had trailed by 17.
Replays showed, though, that he had a toe on the three-point line, which sent the game to overtime and threatened Haliburton with what would have been a highly embarrassing evening.
“I wasn’t like plotting on it or anything,” he said of the gesture. “Everybody wanted me to do it last year at some different point. But it's got to feel right, and it felt right at the time.
“If I would have known it was a two, I would not have done it. So I think I might have wasted it . . . I don’t plan on using it again.”
Haliburton said he initially thought he had made a three-pointer, “but quickly, in my celebration, somebody said it was a two, and then my focus just became winning it. You know, win the game.
“I thought we did a great job of sticking with it in overtime to make big play after big play. Obviously, Aaron [Nesmith]’s heroics, I hope they're talked about it. They can't be talked about enough. He was amazing down the stretch.”
Nesmith made six late three-point field goals and finished with 30 points.
Haliburton’s shot bounced high off the rim and in, making for a moment of high drama at Madison Square Garden.
“It felt like it got stuck up there,” he said. “Honestly, when it like went in, I thought my eyes might have been deceiving me in the moment.
“It felt good when it left my hand. So I thought it was going to go in. The ball felt like it was up there for an eternity. But man, just a special moment.”
Haliburton, the Pacers’ biggest star, finished with team highs of 31 points and 11 assists.
Coach Rick Carlisle seemed not to be a fan of the choking gesture. When asked about it, he said, “I'm not getting into any of that stuff. It doesn't make any sense. This fan base is difficult enough to deal with without getting into a lot of unnecessary words.
“We have great respect for these guys. They beat us two out of three during the season. I've been watching them plow through great teams. It's Day One of 13 days [for a seven-game series].”
Still, when asked whether he wished Haliburton had not done the choke hold, Carlisle said, “Listen, players can do what they want. It’s an emotional thing. It's not a big deal. The place is unlikely to be any louder [for Game 2] than it was tonight.
“I mean, it was crazy out there. The environment, it never disappoints you. It's never disappoints here.”
Carlisle then added, “Tyrese has earned the right to do whatever he wants.”
Haliburton knows his Pacers-Knicks history, and he noted the Pacers lost that 1994 series in which Miller directed his choking gesture at Knicks fan Spike Lee, who was sitting courtside.
Haliburton said he is close with Miller, who was courtside working as an analyst for TNT Sports for Game 1. Haliburton said the two “locked eyes” when it was over.
“Definitely a special time,” Haliburton said, “and yeah, really cool that he was in the building.”
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
