Jalen Brunson and Tyrese Haliburton continued their rivalry at Madison Square Garden tonight. But it wasn't on a New York Knicks court. Rather, it was ringside at WWE Friday Night SmackDown. Brunson was spotted ringside in attendance at the WWE show, which got a massive ovation from the Knicks fans in the audience.
IT'S JALEN BRUNSON #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/u4rA1asL5K
— s e t h (@futurafreesky) June 29, 2024
After this, when Logan Paul made his way to the ring for his match, he took to the mic and claimed that he needed the help of someone who had experience winning at Madison Square Garden. To rile up the fans as a villain, Paul brought out Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton, who walked out wearing a custom WWE t-shirt with his name.
LMAOOOOO HALIBURTON IS HERE#SmackDown pic.twitter.com/iwrOiyQJLF
— s e t h (@futurafreesky) June 29, 2024
Haliburton accompanied Paul to the ring and spotted Jalen Brunson's ringside. The two rivals then proceeded to stare each other down, as they renewed their rivalry from the playoffs this year at Madison Square Garden.
FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/U83t9Du2aN
— s e t h (@futurafreesky) June 29, 2024
The pair then stayed relatively peaceful, with Haliburton staying ringside to support Logan Paul. Haliburton would rile up the fans at The Garden, constantly getting fans to chant 'f*ck the Pacers'. But things got heated when Haliburton tried handing Paul some brass knuckles, which Brunson put a stop to by jumping the rail.
ITS HAPPENING!#SmackDown pic.twitter.com/HO1KofzGDo
— WWE on FOX (@WWEonFOX) June 29, 2024
But it didn't end there. The scuffle between Haliburton and Brunson caused Paul to lose the match to LA Knight. After the match, Paul and Haliburton looked to jump Knight with the brass knuckles, only for Brunson to once again make the save, bringing a steel chair into the ring and forcing Paul and Haliburton to retreat.
JALEN BRUNSON AND TYRESE HALIBURTON MEET IN THE RING
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) June 29, 2024
(Via @WWEonFOX)
pic.twitter.com/87N8ePA9se
Knight and Brunson celebrated as the two fan favorites at the Garden. It was an incredible sight to see two heated rivals face off inside a WWE ring. Perhaps Brunson and Haliburton will replicate Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone and have a wrestling tag-team match in the coming years.
Tyrese Haliburton and Jalen Brunson presumably had a lot of fun taking part on WWE SmackDown. Haliburton especially, is a lifelong WWE fan, and it must have been a dream being in a ring tonight, especially playing a villain at Madison Square Garden, something he got used to doing in the NBA Playoffs.
Haliburton and the Pacers defeated the Knicks in Game 7 of their second-round playoff series at the Garden, sending the Knicks home. Haliburton took the mantle that former Pacers legend Reggie Miller held as the main antagonist of the Knicks. And now, he and Brunson have somewhat of a rivalry brewing.
We can assume that this is nothing more than a friendly and competitive rivalry, as Haliburton recently admitted that he shares a group chat with certain Knicks players, including Jalen Brunson. But the NBA is always thriving when the Pacers and the Knicks are in a heated rivalry.
Haliburton got the better of Brunson this year, but we can be sure that the rivalry is far from over. Both players are yet to hit their primes but are already superstars. Whether you're a Knicks fan or a Pacers fan, you will be looking forward to seeing these two go after each other again.
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