Judging by what he said on Tuesday’s episode of Speak, Keyshawn Johnson doesn’t seem to be an NBA historian.
With Tuesday night’s win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Indiana Pacers clinched a spot in the Eastern Conference Finals for a second straight year. Earlier in the day, Speak looked ahead to a hypothetical Eastern Conference Finals series between the Pacers and New York Knicks, who lead the Boston Celtics 3-1 in their series.
When Speak host Joy Taylor asked if the Knicks should be considered the favorites in the East, Johnson said yes, citing a few factors. One, he felt that while the Cleveland Cavaliers were the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, the Celtics were generally regarded as the favorites. So, he was more impressed by New York’s performance against Boston than Indiana’s against Cleveland. Two, he felt that Knicks star Jalen Brunson was playing too well to be stopped. Finally, Johnson brought up New York’s home court advantage.
“It’s Knick-ville,” he said. “The Garden is cracking. Everybody’s in the house. It’s a crowd of not only celebrities but passionate Knick fans.” When host Joy Taylor then asked Johnson if he thought the Pacers would be intimidated by Madison Square Garden, Johnson replied, “100%. Indy vs New York, come on, man. They’re not used to that.”
Would the Pacers be intimidated playing the Knicks at Madison Square Garden?
“100%. Indy vs New York, come on man. They’re not used to that,” Keyshawn Johnson.pic.twitter.com/wMEw7NpcLt
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 14, 2025
There’s certainly a case to be made that the Knicks have been more impressive, and it may well be that Brunson will be too much to stop. But to say that the Pacers won’t be ready to play at Madison Square Garden? We don’t need to go too far back to find a time when Indiana won a big playoff game in New York.
As we noted earlier, this is Indiana’s second trip to the Eastern Conference Finals in as many seasons. In 2024, the Pacers reached the Conference Finals by beating the Knicks in the second round. That was a seven-game series, which was largely dominated by the home teams. The lone exception came in Game 7, when the Pacers decisively beat the Knicks in Madison Square Garden.
Citing what happened in 2024, Several people on X questioned Johnson’s take.
2024 was a long time ago. https://t.co/t1z70t83yH
— Tony East (@TonyREast) May 14, 2025
The Pacers won a game 7 at MSG last season.
The state of sports media is pathetic. https://t.co/IjxagkZ5eE
— Anthony Doyle🍉 (@Anthonysmdoyle) May 14, 2025
I’ve seen some stupid comments — but this may take #1. He doesn’t remember the #Pacers winning game 7 by 21 points at MSG last year?
TWO “gentlemen’s sweeps” in a row! Let’s get two more! Go @Pacers! https://t.co/sahMfOghmP
— Scott McKain (@scottmckain) May 14, 2025
I mean this is flat out embarrassing https://t.co/IHEKssZ9CW
— Scott Strasemeier (@ScottStras) May 14, 2025
This isn’t to say that history will repeat itself. Brunson was not 100% during last year’s series. And while the Pacers had already built a 10-point lead, he injured his hand in Game 7. New York also underwent some significant roster changes last year. Beyond that, something happening in 2024 doesn’t mean it will happen again in 2025.
But regardless of whether one agrees with Johnson or not, this was curious logic.