Nearly two decades after retiring as a player, Reggie Miller is still front-and-center in the rivalry between the New York Knicks and his former team, the Indiana Pacers. That rivalry was renewed when the two teams met in the playoffs and now, even with both teams eliminated, a war of words has continued.
Most recently, Knicks star Jalen Brunson took issue with Miller’s recollection of something that happened during that series.
While Indiana eventually won the series, New York jumped out to a 2-0 series lead with a pair of wins at Madison Square Garden. In Game 2, Miller was announcing the game for TNT. With the Knicks comfortably ahead late, fans at Madison Square Garden hurled a profane chant Miller’s way. In a moment heard on television, New York’s Josh Hart made made sure Miller heard the chants.
On Mark Jackson’s podcast, Miller addressed that moment. He took some shots at New York’s fans, calling them “frontrunners” but also criticized Hart, who he said poured gasoline on the fire. Miller did say, “I don’t think there was anything malicious” in regards to Hart’s intent, but added “Like why am I being dragged into the series? I’m here to work.”
Brunson took issue with that.
In an interview with Taylor Rooks, Brunson agreed that Hart should not have said that to Miller but also pointed out that Miller had already brought himself into things.
“I understand where I’m coming from. Here are my thoughts. Josh should not have gone over and said that to him — 100%. Reggie said, ‘Hey, why am I being brought into this? I’m just coming here to do my job. You came in to do your job. Yes you did. But Reggie, you started the chirping. Reggie did start the chirping. He said this, he said, ‘They boogeyman is coming back to New York.’ He said that. He said, ‘Why should I be scared to come back to New York?’ He shouldn’t be scared to come back to New York.”
Jalen Brunson responds to Reggie Miller’s latest comments on the Knicks 👀
(via @TaylorRooks) pic.twitter.com/cNYmtJYg2G
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 13, 2024
Rooks then added that Miller said, “I own this place,” which Brunson echoed
“I’m like, ‘Reg, while you were coming to do your job and didn’t want to be brought into it, you said some things that brought [you] into it.’ People probably wouldn’t have said anything if you just came there and just did it. So that’s my thought on it.”
[Photo/Video Credit: Bleacher Report on X (via Taylor Rooks)]
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