It was Tyrese Haliburton & Co. who came out on top to end NY Knicks‘ tough journey. The series was evenly poised until the NY side started losing their players to injuries. However, they had the boisterous MSG crowd by their side as an advantage to take on the series decider. On the other end, Haliburton stripped off everything from the table and produced a masterclass performance in the afternoon to qualify for the Conference Finals. Especially speaking of an “awkward-angle” pass from the youngster, veteran announcer Doris Burke compared him to Patrick Mahomes!

During the late end of the second quarter, Haliburton made a heavily contested pass to his big man, Myles Turner, with three defenders surrounding him near the paint. In response to it, Burke said, “What hand has he got the ball in? The right hand. And the passing angles, it’s like watching Mahomes sometimes. Those awkward throwing angles with the arm. Look at this pass. Just a drop pass between multiple guys, whatever it takes to get it there.” 

The Kansas City Chiefs’ star quarterback is nothing short of a wizard when it comes to passes. Notably, he left the sporting world in disbelief during their comeback win against the 49ers in Super Bowl LIV with an iconic pass at the end.

Over the years, many analysts and experts addressed the gifted arm and the passing abilities he possessed in his arsenal, along with an uncanny sidearm pass. At the same time, Tyrese Haliburton also developed a similar reputation within a short duration. This season, he led the league with assists at an average of 10.9 assists per game.

Speaking of his ability, even his teammate Andrew Nembhard described it as “Creative” and “Diabolical”. The describing words may be strange, but Haliburton brought out a unique passing IQ into the business.

MSG was given a grave flashback as Tyrese Haliburton sealed the deal

The 2024 Indiana Pacers side opened a portal to the 1994 MSG arena with a dominant 130-109 victory over the Knicks. During the 1994 Conference Finals, Reggie Miller anchored the Pacers to an iconic series with a magical performance. In Game 5, he scored 25 points in the last quarter to cut down a massive lead and take the series 3-2 up. Following the game, Miller hit the headlines for his choke celebrations.

Tonight, Tyrese Haliburton & Co. recreated a similar atmosphere for the NY crowd. In fact, Haliburton literally gave an ode to Reggie Miller as he wore a sweater that had Miller’s iconic choke celebration on it. Haliburton dropped 26 points with 6 assists to take the side to the Conference Finals to face the mighty Boston Celtics.

On the other hand, the Knicks had the worst possible situation heading into the series decider. Leaving Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson, the team had Josh Hart and OG Anunoby on the injury report heading into Game 7. While Hart had an underwhelming night dropping 10 points, Anunoby couldn’t stay on the court after 5 minutes.

Nevertheless, the young Pacers side has an opportunity at the ring this time. Notably, the Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis won’t be available for the two games with a calf injury that he sustained during the first round.

Will the Pacers beat the Celtics? Let us know in the comments.