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Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks play Game 1 in Eastern Conference Finals Wednesday night in Madison Square Garden, where they will add another chapter to their great playoff history.
Knicks and Pacers collided in the playoffs six times from 1993-2000, with these series filled with heated moments between players and fans.
Below are some of the most iconic moments from the clashes between the bitter rivals over the years.
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New York Knicks Guard John Starks, right, violates Indiana Pacers Guard Reggie Miller during a game on April 2, 1996 in Indianapolis. (John Ruthroff/AFP via Getty Images)
Headbutt
Knicks were up to 2-0 over Pacers in the first round of NBA playoffs in 1993 when Tempers flared in the third quarter. Knicks star guard John Starks, after scoring, was talking about Reggie Miller.
The trash culminated with Stark’s headbuting Miller. Starks were immediately pushed out of the game. Pacers won that game 3, but Knicks won the subsequent Game 4 and the series.
However, the basis of the bitterness between the teams was laid with the headband.
Choke movement
In 1994, the two teams met again, this time in the eastern conference final. Knicks was looking to take a commanding 3-2 lead in Game 5 and was up 70-58 in the third quarter.
However, Miller dominated the fourth quarter, scoring 25 of his 39 points. Over the fourth quarter, Miller went back and forth with Knick’s Superfan Spike Lee.
Miller spotted Lee by making a now notorious choke gesture. Pacers won that game 5 behind Millers’ strong performance, but lost the next two games, and Knicks won the series in seven games and went to the NBA final.
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New York Knicks’ Larry Johnson turns down a 3-pointer and is buried by Indiana Pacers’ Antonio Davis for a rare 4-point game in Knicks’ Playoff victory on June 5, 1999. (Linda Cataffo/New Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
The unlikely comeback
Thirdly in a row, Pacers and Knicks faced in the playoffs in 1995, this time in the eastern conference semi -final.
Miller, who had been at the heart of the rivalry, author one of the most unquestionable comebacks in the NBA Playoff History.
Knicks were up 105-99 with 16 seconds left in the fourth quarter of Game 1 as Miller turned the game upside down by scoring eight points in nine seconds.
The Pacers star drilled a 3-point with approx. 16 seconds left and then hit another 3-pointer after he stole Knicks’ inbound passport. After Knicks missed a couple of free kicks and a put-back attempt, Miller grabbed Miller rebound and was subsequently committed.
Miller went to the free throwing line, buried two free throwing and gave Pacers a 107-105 lead.
In the 1995 series, Matchup from 1994 went the full seven matches, but Pacers won this time and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Larry Johnsons 4-point games
The two teams met in the 1998 semi -finals of the Eastern Conference, but Pacers were heavy favorites due to Knicks’ star Patrick Ewing’s wrist injury. Pacers sent Knicks in five matches.
However, in the eastern conference final in 1999, the two teams met again, and Knicks were not as oversized as they were the previous season.
Knicks won the series in six games, with Johnson delivering one of the most iconic shots in the franchise story in Game 3.
Pacers held a 91-88 lead with six seconds left in the game when Johnson spiked a 3-pointer and was also buried by Antonio Davis. Johnson hit the free throw to give Knicks a 92-91 lead, and that score would contain when Knicks caught victory out of the defeat’s jaws.
Indiana Pacers Guard Tyrese Haliburton appears in the fourth quarter of Game 7 in the second round of the playoffs against Knicks at Madison Square Garden in New York on May 19, 2024. (Brad Penner-USA Today Sports)
A shooting performance at any time
Pacers and Knicks played again in the eastern conference final in 2000, and Pacers surpassed Knicks in six games and got revenge for 1999.
The next time the two teams met in the playoffs, 2013 was in the eastern conference semi -final, with new stars involved to reign the rivalry.
The Paul George-led Pacers went down on Carmelo Anthony-led Knicks in six games.
The two teams would not see each other in the playoffs again before last season in the eastern conference semi -final. Pacers sent a Knick’s team that was decimated by damage to Game 7 with a historic shooting performance.
Pacers shot an astonishing 67.1% from the field in that game 7, good for an NBA playoffs, in their 130-109 victory.
Pacers has a 5-3 series record over knicks in the playoffs and has a 26-22 playoff record against Knicks.
