If pictures say a thousand words, than the point that Indiana Pacers legend Reggie Miller gave Tyrese Haliburton after their incredible comeback victory over the New York Knicks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final could have a novel written about it.
The Knicks-Pacers rivalry was one of the bedrocks of the NBA in the 1990s with the two franchises meeting six times in the postseason from 1993-2000 and each side winning three series a piece. But unquestionably the most famous moment was Reggie Miller scoring 8 points in the final 18 seconds to steal an improbable victory in Game 1 of the 1995 conference semis.
What happened on Wednesday night thanks to Tyrese Haliburton and Aaron Nesmith may have even topped Miller’s heroics.
Trailing by 14 points with under 3 minutes to play, a barrage of threes from Nesmith and Haliburton got Indiana within two. Then, Haliburton bounced in a miraculous shot that he thought won at the buzzer and proceeded to give the Hall of Famer’s famous choke signal with Reggie Miller himself sitting courtside for the NBA on TNT. However, with his toe on the line the game went to overtime. It didn’t matter as the Pacers completed the comeback anyways, winning 138-135.
After the game, Tyrese Haliburton was interviewed by TNT. And although Reggie Miller didn’t say anything, he didn’t have to. This point and the look in his eyes told us all we needed to know. The Pacers had a new generational star and a new Knicks killer.
This Reggie Miller point to Tyrese Haliburton is everything. pic.twitter.com/p2OEZaGdA7
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 22, 2025
Reggie Miller did his best to stay impartial during the telecast, which must be incredibly hard to do given his very personal history in the rivalry. But those who saw his silent nod to Tyrese Haliburton immediately knew the significance of the moment and the improbable comeback.
There have now been four comebacks in the playoffs since 1997 when teams trailed by seven points or more in the final 50 seconds of regulation. The Indiana Pacers have three of them this postseason.