Viral Pacers fan who had trash thrown at him by rowdy Knicks nuts gets hero's welcome in Indiana for Game 4
Hans Perez has arrived.
The Pacers fan, who went viral for having trash thrown at him by Knicks fans for wearing a Tyrese Haliburton jersey, touched down in Indiana for Game 4 on Tuesday — a guest of the team and the star guard.
Haliburton offered up a bounty of prizes for Perez, a firefighter who went viral as Knicks fans harassed him outside of Madison Square Garden.
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3 One of Hans Perez's first stops in Indiana was the set of the 'Pat McAfee Show.'
Pat McAfee Show / X
Perez found himself getting a very different kind of welcome in Indiana: members of the Indianapolis Fire Department and Indiana International Airport staff met him at the gate and ferried him across the city in a firetruck.
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'Tyrese did great, he laid out the red carpet for me,' he said on the 'Pat McAfee Show' on Tuesday. 'It's been awesome, as soon as I got out [of] the gate at the airport, I got five service guys waiting for me, the whole airport was there taking pictures of me. I pull up to the hotel, I got the Pacemates, I got Boomer waiting for me.
'This is awesome, this is great.'
The next venture was offering an update to McAfee and his crew — eight days after Haliburton made his overture to Perez live.
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It's been a whirlwind since, with Perez adjusting to his newfound fame, even if some elements remain familiar.
'I've been getting my chops busted all my life for being a Pacers fan… now the whole fire department knows I'm a Pacers fan,' he said. 'My daughter's softball game, all the parents are coming up to me, oh my God.'
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Many have offered encouraging words following his viral fame, despite being subjected to bags of trash being hurled at him, including by several Knicks fans, he told McAfee.
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'That's not right, not how you treat people,' he said of their messages to him. 'They're showing support, giving me a lot of credit.
3 Knicks fans follow Hans Perez in his Pacers jersey after a Game 6 win over the Celtics.
X, @PAtMcAfeeShow
3 Perez was harassed by Knicks fans on the streets outside Madison Square Garden.
The biggest prize for Perez is set for Tuesday night, however, when he'll be at Gainbridge Fieldhouse to watch his team take on the Knicks in the Eastern Conference finals.
With his beloved Pacers up in the series, Perez sees no reason for that to change — even if his pals at home won't like his prediction.
'We're going up 3-1 tonight,' he said. 'The Pacers are gonna get the job done. Knicks are in trouble.'
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