The Indiana Pacers were publicly furious with officials after the first two games of their Eastern Conference semifinals series against the New York Knicks. However, they were oddly quiet following Game 3 when those same officials missed a game-changing call against forward Pascal Siakam.
Earlier in the week, Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle ripped the officials publicly while the team submitted 78 instances of what they viewed as bad or missed calls to the league. The repeated criticism led to a $35,000 fine for Carlisle.
Now the shoe is on the other foot.
In the final moments of a 111-106 Pacers victory on Friday night, Siakam grabbed Knicks center Isaiah Hartenstein from behind, preventing him from stepping up into the paint. The missed call led to an easy layup and a lead for Indiana with under 2:00 remaining.
Watch Isaiah Hartenstein and Pascal Siakam.
Inexcusable stuff. pic.twitter.com/F6qa45z2us https://t.co/8elczmDqRj
— KnicksMuse (@KnicksMuse) May 11, 2024
Unlike the Pacers before them, the Knicks shouldered blame for the loss and largely avoided criticizing the officials (save for Josh Hart) despite the justification.
“We can’t harp on the officiating or doing anything like that. We could be better. And whoever’s out there, whoever is out on the floor, you can’t let it fall into the 50/50 calls,” Knicks guard Donte DiVincenzo said, via the New York Post.
While Knicks players may take a pass on ripping the officials, Knicks fans won’t offer them that same respect. They’re going to make themselves heard when the series return to MSG for Game 5 on Tuesday.
Game 4 will be played on Sunday afternoon at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse with Indiana looking to tie the series up at 2-2.
