Rick Carlisle gave his thoughts on Tyrese Haliburton emulating Reggie Miller’s iconic ‘choke celebration.
The Indiana Pacers defeated the New York Knicks in arguably the most thrilling game of the playoffs so far.
Despite them gaining a 17-point lead, the Knicks couldn’t put the Pacers away. This opened the door for Aaron Nesmith to explode for 20 points in the fourth quarter.
One of the biggest moments in the game came when Tyrese Haliburton made an incredibly clutch shot to (inadvertently) tie the game and send it to overtime.
Haliburton celebrated using Reggie Miller’s iconic choke celebration, something he admitted to regretting after the game. But how did his head coach feel about it?
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Speaking after the game, Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle addressed Tyrese Haliburton emulating Reggie Miller against the Knicks.
Carlisle, who coached both stars during his two separate tenures as the Pacers’ head coach, noted he had no issues or even strong feelings about Haliburton whipping out the iconic celebration.
“Players can do what they want. It’s an emotional thing. It’s not a big deal. We gotta go out there. The place is unlikely to be louder than it was tonight. It was crazy out there.”
“The environment never disappoints you. This time of year, you want to go into the most hostile, difficult environments and test your mettle. To go against Brunson, KAT, Bridges, and these guys.”
“This is a difficult time of the year. It’s not a big deal. Tyrese has earned the right to do whatever he wants.”
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Coach Carlisle also spoke about how his players made a comeback despite being down. He applauded his players as NBA stars, but admitted that the Pacers are only getting better at comebacks with each one they execute.
“NBA players are amazing. These guys get on a roll, and they do amazing things… It’s a muscle. The more you exercise it, the stronger it gets.”
The Indiana Pacers have made it a habit over the last few years to come from underneath. Not only have they won several playoff series despite being the lower seed in the last two seasons, they did so by pulling off several in-game comebacks.
The Pacers have a leg up on the Knicks heading into this series. Given their recent history, this doesn’t bode well for the Knicks in the remaining games.
