Tyrese Haliburton breaks his silence on rival Knicks winning the championship

The rivalry between Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers and the New York Knicks has been one of the spicier ones the league has seen in recent years. However, that took a sabbatical this past season when the All-Star guard missed the entire campaign due to an Achilles tear he suffered in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals.

With Haliburton in street clothes, he could not do anything but watch the Knicks turn in a dominant run in the postseason, which culminated in an overdue championship for the franchise after beating the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals. Now, the Pacers star has finally made his feelings known about New York winning the title.

Tyrese Haliburton reveals his true feelings about the Knicks winning the championship

In a recent episode of the "Boardroom Talks," Haliburton was asked about a myriad of topics, one of which was his sentiments about watching his team's nemesis hoisting the Larry O'Brien trophy after winning in the Finals.

"The Knicks are they like our rival? Yes. But like are those guys like, I like those guys and like their friends? Yeah. At the same time, you know, like I usually watch like a Finals celebration when like I have before in my life like I watch because that’s like a special thing and like an emotional thing to watch guys win a championship and then celebrate with their families like, I’m always like man that’s fire but when the Knicks won I thought to myself I got to turn this s--t off."

Indiana has beaten New York in two straight years in the playoffs before the Knicks had a breakthrough this year, which coincided with the Pacers not being in the competitive loop. Of course, that has to sting a bit for Haliburton.

The Pacers star is indeed close friends with a slew of key players from the Knicks, but at the same time, it is certainly strange to see their biggest rival rise to the top while he was helpless to prevent that, something he was able to do against New York in consecutive playoff runs.

Now, Haliburton is set to return, which gives Indiana life in the suddenly jampacked East. The Pacers still have their core that made the Finals, and as long as their All-Star regains his form, they should remain in strong contention.