Reggie Miller seemingly stops celebrating with Tyrese Haliburton as TNT cameras catch him in the act

The Indiana Pacers pulled out a shocker, taking down the New York Knicks in Game 1 at Madison Square Garden via the heroics of Tyrese Haliburton late in the game. Haliburton’s jumper, which bounced off the rim and went in at the buzzer, forced overtime, where Indiana ultimately took the win.

After draining the game-tying jumper, the Pacers star signalled a choke sign, reminiscent of what former Indiana star Reggie Miller did during the 1994 playoffs to Spike Lee, a New York superfan.

During the Pacers’ celebration, Miller was caught pointing at Tyrese Haliburton but quickly hid it as the team celebrated the come-from-behind win on the road to open the series. A fan posted a video of the moment from the broadcast on X.

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Miller was in the commentary as the analyst for TNT’s broadcast of the game.

In the 1994 series, the then-Miller-led Pacers lost the series as the Knicks advanced to that year’s NBA Finals.

During overtime, Miller even addressed the wild sequence late in regulation.

"The kind bounce. The choke sign. We're getting it all here in Game 1," he said.

Tyrese Haliburton finished the game with 31 points, four rebounds, and 11 assists to complete the comeback win that saw the Knicks lead by as much as 14 points with three minutes left in the fourth quarter.

The win gave Indiana the home-court advantage for the rest of the series as Game 2 returns to New York on Friday.

Tyrese Haliburton addresses choke taunt in Game 1

Tyrese Haliburton expressed why he did the chokehold sign late in regulation as the Pacers completed the comeback victory in overtime.

Talking after the game, Haliburton said he was holding the celebration out and only did it because it was the most appropriate time.

"Everybody's been wanting me to do it. I was going to hold it for the right time. It felt appropriate. And then, you know, it went to overtime,” Haliburton said.

“If I knew it was a 2, I would not have done it. I might have wasted it,” he added.

Pacers have been one of the hottest teams in the playoffs, beating the Milwaukee Bucks and the Cleveland Cavaliers in just five games each in the first two rounds.

With the terrific Game 1 win, the Pacers also snapped the Knicks' momentum after taking down the defending champions Boston Celtics, in the second round.

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Rob Andrew Lo

Rob Andrew Lo is an NBA and WNBA journalist at Sportskeeda with over three years of experience in the field. Rob studied journalism at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, Philippines and his love for sports made this an obvious career to pursue.

Rob's favorite team is the Oklahoma City Thunder. He grew up watching Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant and his admiration for them left not only a lasting impression but solidified his fandom.

When not working, Rob loves to play basketball. If he isn't watching or writing about basketball, he can probably be found watching pro wrestling.

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