Why Does Reggie Miller Hate the NY Knicks? Diving Deep Into Pacers Legend’s Deep-Seated Rivalry

“I hate them” — after a point, Reggie Miller never did sugarcoat his feelings towards the Knicks. 1993 was the year that the seeds of this rivalry were first sown. The Indiana Pacers v New York Knicks clashed with each other 6 times from 1993 to 2000. Having played all his 18 NBA seasons with the Pacers, Miller naturally found this rivalry growing on a personal level as well.

So much so that with time, he earned the name of Knick Killer for his dominating performances against the franchise. It was during Game 2 of the first round of playoffs in 1993 that Knicks’ John Starks ignored Miller’s handshake. What came next was the 5x All-Star exploding against the Knicks with his 36 points in Game 3. But the highlight of this game was Starks head-butting Miller and getting ejected.

Reggie Miller’s increasing hatred for Knicks through the 90s

After the head-butting incident, Starks had stated that the Pacers guard hit him with an elbow to the chest, which made him mad. As per a recent article by SB Nation, the Knick Killer, back then, said, “I don’t think I make people mad… the media blows it out of proportion. I’m a nice guy…” However, by the time the two teams clashed again in the 1994 conference semifinals, Miller’s nice guy notion changed to “I want the Knicks… I like being the bad guy”.

The 5x All-Star by the time thought that everyone couldn’t be the good guy. “So someone has to be the bad guy,” he said, as per the SB Nation article. This was a sign of growth in Miller’s dislike towards the Knicks within just two seasons’ span. And it was not just Reggie Miller but both sides that were not letting things go by, resulting in the series going up to Game 7. But it was the Knicks who had the last laugh as they won the series by 4-3.

However, the Pacers got the chance to level up things with their third matchup in the 1995 playoffs. By this time, a lot was said by both sides, but there was nothing that Miller wished he did not say. “There’s nothing I don’t ever wish I didn’t say. If it comes out of my mouth, it was meant to be said,” he said in 1995. This was enough proof that the Pacers guard was not saying things just in the heat of the moment.

By the time the Pacers and Knicks reached their 6th match-up in 2000, the feelings from Reggie Miller’s side were so strong that he stated he hated the Knicks. “… we know they don’t give us any respect. So why should I give respect or like someone that doesn’t give us respect?… Personally, I wanted to play New York, somewhat exorcise some demons,” he said. However, it was not as if this epic rivalry was all talks and no show.

Some highlight moments from the Knicks v Pacers rivalry in the

After the infamous head-butting incident in 1993, an iconic moment against Knicks’ superfan Spike Lee came from Reggie Miller. During Game 5 of the 1994 conference semi-finals, the Knick Killer went on fire with his 39 points. And amid the heat of breaking the 2-2 tie in Game 5 came the choking gesture by Miller towards Lee.

Yet another iconic instance from this rivalry was Miller’s 8 points, with 18.7 seconds remaining on the clock. This came during Game 1 of the 1995 playoffs when the Knicks had a 6-point lead on the Pacers. However, Miller leveled the score by sinking two 3-pointers and 13.2 seconds left on the clock. The Knicks had a comeback chance, but Starks missed both his free throws awarded after a foul on him. But the Knick Killer did not make the same mistake and sank both free throws, which he got after a foul on him during a rebound.

The neck-to-neck battle that occurred in game 41 continued throughout the series. As a result, the series went up to Game 7 with the last game at Knicks’ home court, Madison Square Garden. And contrary to popular expectations, the Pacers emerged victorious in the series with a 4-3 series win. The most recent highlight moment of this rivalry came this season itself when the 1994 and 1995 playoffs scenario was repeated with a Game 7 situation. And the Pacers repeated the 1995 success with a Game 7 win at MSG.