The New York Knicks took a 1-0 series lead on the Indiana Pacers Monday night. New York’s 121-117 victory over the Pacers sharpened an early edge for the Knicks in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. They’re three wins away from the team’s first Eastern Conference Finals trip of the 21st Century.
So, naturally, here we are, wondering if a conspiracy is involved in the proceedings.
On Undisputed Tuesday morning on FS1, Keyshawn Johnson appeared to imply that the league wants the Knicks to defeat the Pacers this round. Why? Because facing the Boston Celtics is more attractive to the league, basically. This is a cliche at this point.
“They don’t want to see the Pacers play against the Celtics, they better see the Celtics and the Knicks play.” – Keyshawn Johnson reacts to calls going New York’s way late in Game 1 vs Indiana pic.twitter.com/n6lkK1jV0b
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 7, 2024
“They don’t want to see the Pacers play against the Celtics,” Johnson said. “They better see the Celtics and the Knicks play. Because hey? Guess what? Everybody is in the city is gonna be watching.”
Johnson said he’ll “always feel this way” when calls lean one way to the other, especially when it’s “in New York.”
“Who would you rather see play? I know you don’t want to say it, so I’ll say it for you: Boston and the Knicks. You don’t want to see Indy and the Knicks.”
NBA conspiracies tend to revolve around the big markets. To be clear, sometimes the league partners don’t help themselves in this regard. Even the NBA, which appears poised to only host its All-Star game in premier markets and venues, doesn’t help themselves.
Then again, it’s one thing for fans to have this conspiracy and entirely another when it’s being floated around on television. This isn’t the first time, nor do we imagine it will be the last. Does the NBA have the benefit of the doubt in its corner? That’s yet to be seen, and most likely not, but these conspiracies will live on.
About Chris Novak
Chris Novak has been talking and writing about sports ever since he can remember. Previously, Novak wrote for and managed sites in the SB Nation network for nearly a decade from 2013-2022