The ball went in at the buzzer, and Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers wanted the New York Knicks to know his feelings.
Following his sensational and instantly iconic shot at the end of regulation on Wednesday night, Haliburton made a choking signal to the crowd, an homage to Reggie Miller’s famous move after the Pacers beat the Knicks during a playoff game in the 1990s.
After the game and a tough overtime period that led to his team winning 138-135, Haliburton spoke with ESPN about his gesture.
“I wasn’t like plotting on it or anything,” Haliburton said after the game. “Everybody wanted me to do it last year at some point, but it’s got to feel right. It felt right at the time — well, if I would’ve known it was a 2, I would not have done it. So I think I might’ve wasted it.”
Haliburton revealed that he thought his shot was a three-pointer.
If it had been, his team would have won right then and wouldn’t have needed the overtime period.
Fired up and proud of himself and his team, Haliburton couldn’t stop himself.
It probably helped that Miller himself was in the building, calling the game for TNT and just feet away from the action.
This gesture may have looked ill-advised if the Pacers didn’t end up winning the game, but they did, and now this moment will be forever remembered in Indiana sports history.
This was a playoff game that people will be talking about for a long time.
The fact that the Pacers came back from a 14-point deficit with less than three minutes on the clock is an NBA feat never seen before in the postseason.
Everything from Wednesday night will be highlighted for years to come, but not for Knicks fans.
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