The Knicks and Pacers met six times in the playoffs between 1993 and 2000, creating a slew of memorable moments and a bitter rivalry between the two Eastern Conference squads. But perhaps no moment was more memorable than Reggie Miller’s troll of the Knicks in 1994.
Miller threw up a choking symbol during Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals during those playoffs, an image seared into the memory of Knicks fans out of a decade of playoff heartbreak.
Even more than three decades later, the gesture remains one of the defining images of the rivalry between the Pacers and Knicks.
Here’s a look back at Miller’s choke celebration against the Knicks and the events leading up to it.
MORE: Comparing Pacers comebacks vs. Knicks — 2025 Game 1 vs. 1994 Game 5
What is the Reggie Miller choke celebration?
The Pacers went to the fourth quarter of Game 5 of the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals trailing by 12, but Miller outscored the Knicks himself in the final quarter, scoring 25 points as New York’s lead rapidly slipped away.
Miller’s quarter included five 3-pointers, and the Pacers would win 93-86 on the road to silence the Madison Square Garden crowd and give Indiana a 3-2 series lead.
The Hall of Famer put his hands on his neck and made a choking gesture toward Knicks super fan Spike Lee after a corner 3-pointer during the comeback. Lee, who was already standing and gesturing toward Miller when the choking gesture was made, developed a rivalry with the Pacers star during the 1990s.
[embedded content]
The Knicks experienced plenty of heartbreak in the 1990s, reaching the playoffs in 14 consecutive season from 1987-88 to 2000-01 without winning a championship. New York not only fell victim to Michael Jordan’s Bulls dynasty in the East but found the Pacers to be a formidable obstacle as well.
Miller’s choking symbol has become a symbol of that heartbreak, but ironically enough, the Knicks went on to win the series in seven games. New York won in Indiana in Game 6 before taking care of business in Game 7 behind a 24-point, 22-rebound performance by Patrick Ewing.
MORE: Have the Pacers ever won an NBA Championship?
Reggie Miller-Spike Lee beef, explained
Lee, a well known director who has been a fixture at Knicks’ games for more than three decades, regularly trash-talked opposing players during the franchise’s run of success in the 1990s. Miller was no exception, and the friction between the two grew because Miller was actually willing to give it right back to Lee.
Miller was a member of the Pacers for all six of Indiana’s playoff meetings with the Knicks from 1993 to 2000, so Lee became a recurring character in his career. Miller said in 2015 that Lee’s taunts were “a little personal,” even referencing his sister, basketball star Cheryl Miller.
“I made [Lee] part of the game,” Miller told the Dan Patrick Show.
Lee particularly made a point of taunting Miller when the Knicks and Pacers faced off in the 1994 Eastern Conference finals. He also unintentionally sparked something in Miller, who unleashed his 25-point quarter in Game 5 while going back and forth with Lee.
Miller said in 2024 that the beef was behind him and Lee, though there is clearly still tension between the Knicks and Pacers all these years later.
MORE: Full details of beef between Reggie Miller, Spike Lee
Tyrese Haliburton brings back Reggie Miller choke vs. Knicks
Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton trolled the Knicks in Game 1 of the 2025 Eastern Conference finals by bringing back the choking gesture after drilling the game-tying shot at the end of regulation.
“He tried to give your choke sign to the Knicks. And the game’s not over.”
Stan Van Gundy to Reggie Miller after Tyrese Haliburton’s game-tying buzzer beater, sending the Pacers and Knicks to overtime.
Replay confirmed that Haliburton’s foot was on the line. pic.twitter.com/5vzCk5gk48
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 22, 2025
Indiana’s Game 1 comeback was even more remarkable than the one that prompted Miller’s gesture 31 years earlier, as the Pacers trailed by 14 with under three minutes remaining and by nine with under a minute remaining.
After a missed free throw took away the Knicks’ ability to foul the Pacers on their final possession, Haliburton put up a shot he believed won the game — it went in, but after his celebration, he and the rest of the Madison Square Garden crowd realized his foot was on the 3-point line. The Pacers still needed to win five more minutes, or Haliburton might have never heard the end of what would have been a premature celebration.
Fortunately for the young star, Indiana won and Haliburton’s choking symbol became another chapter in the history between the Pacers and Knicks.
MORE: Tyrese Haliburton buzzer-beaters and game-winners timeline
Reactions to choke celebration
Miller predictably loved Haliburton’s best impression of him, even as he called Game 1 between the Pacers and Knicks.
tyrese haliburton doing the reggie miller choke at MSG and then pointing to him in the crowd is why sports are awesome pic.twitter.com/2VLcviVRU0
— Molly Morrison (@mollyhannahm) May 22, 2025
Haliburton’s father, still banned from attending Pacers games after an on-court fracas with Giannis Antetokounmpo, mirrored his son’s celebration after Game 1.
Tyrese Haliburton’s dad John hits the choke celebration after the Pacers win Game 1. 🤣
(🎥: @pplcallme_Ky)pic.twitter.com/q2W4e9AB7T
— theScore (@theScore) May 22, 2025
Skip Bayless was initially skeptical of how Haliburton’s celebration would be received once it was determined the shot only tied the game, but he gave the Pacers star credit when Indiana pulled off the win.
OK, Haliburton was right: all-time choke job by the Knicks. I’m about to unleash a video on “Stephen A’s Team.”
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) May 22, 2025
MORE: How Tyrese Haliburton song ‘WTHELLY’ became Pacers anthem
Pacers-Knicks playoff history
The Pacers and Knicks have met nine times in the playoffs, including six times between 1993 and 2000.
| Year | Round | Winner | Loser | Result |
| 1993 | Eastern Conference First Round | Knicks | Pacers | 3-1 |
| 1994 | Eastern Conference Finals | Knicks | Pacers | 4-3 |
| 1995 | Eastern Conference Semifinals | Pacers | Knicks | 4-3 |
| 1998 | Eastern Conference Semifinals | Pacers | Knicks | 4-1 |
| 1999 | Eastern Conference Finals | Knicks | Pacers | 4-2 |
| 2000 | Eastern Conference Finals | Pacers | Knicks | 4-1 |
| 2013 | Eastern Conference Semifinals | Pacers | Knicks | 4-2 |
| 2024 | Eastern Conference Semifinals | Pacers | Knicks | 4-3 |
| 2025 | Eastern Conference Finals | TBD | TBD | TBD |
The results during that nine-year stretch were even, as the Knicks picked up series wins in 1993, 1994 and 1999 while the Pacers eliminated New York in 1995, 1998 and 2000.
The Pacers won battles with the Knicks in 2013 and 2024, but an Eastern Conference Finals matchup in 2025 renewed the rivalry with the help of Haliburton’s theatrics.
MORE: Inside complete playoff history between Knicks, Pacers
