Pacers' T.J. McConnell taunts Timothee Chalamet, Kylie Jenner and Ben Stiller in surreal moment
T.J. McConnell gave the star-studded celebrity row at Madison Square Garden a little taunting after hitting a 3 in the first half of Game 5 between the Knicks and Pacers on Thursday night.
The Pacers point guard knocked down a 3-pointer with 3:14 left in the first quarter to cut the Knicks' lead to 25-18, and on his way back up the court to play defense, he flexed on the celebrity supporters, which was captured by a photographer and posted to social media by the team's X account.
The hilarious photo shows McConnell gesturing toward the stunned row, which included Miles Teller and his wife Keleigh, Timothée Chalamet and girlfriend Kylie Jenner, and Ben Stiller.
The image shows the reaction of the crew with varying degrees of emotions.
T.J. McConnell of the Indiana Pacers shooting the ball during Game 5 on May 29, 2025.
NBAE via Getty Images
Stiller, who is off on the edge of the frame on the right, appeared to be staring McConnell down as Teller seemed to be making a face of frustration mixed with some resignation.
Chalamet didn't seem to notice, and Jenner looked almost surprised as McConnell celebrated in their direction.
While the trey felt like a big one, the Knicks maintained control throughout much of Thursday's Game 5 at MSG.
T.J. McConnell jumps for a rebound during the first quarter of Game 5.
Jason Szenes / New York Post
The building was packed with stars, aside from the ones McConnell appeared to gesture to.
Celebrity fans Spike Lee and Tracy Morgan occupied their usual courtside seats, while TV personalities Gayle King and Michael Strahan also sat front row.
'Law & Order: SVU' stars Mariska Hargitay and Kelli Giddish made the trip to the Garden for the game, as did singer Shaboozey, 'Sopranos' star Michael Imperioli and 'Euphoria' star Maude Apatow.
Thursday's game did appear to disprove WFAN host Boomer Esiason's presumption, which he made on his morning sports talk show, that the team played better on the road because they 'hate' playing in front of the celebs at MSG.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Chicago Tribune
32 minutes ago
- Chicago Tribune
SuperSonics fans feel no allegiance to the Thunder in these NBA Finals. Go Pacers, the scornful say.
SEATTLE — It's logical to think someone like Danny Ball is a fair representation of Seattle these days. Ball, a hoops fan who runs an Instagram account called 'Iconic Sonics,' is pulling for the Indiana Pacers over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals. There are no deep ties between Seattle and Indianapolis. The Seahawks play the Colts this December, so the cities will be foes that weekend. Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever probably won't be warmly welcomed when they visit the Emerald City later this month to play the Seattle Storm. But right now, Seattle may as well be an Indy suburb. Seattle fans lost their NBA franchise, the SuperSonics, in 2008 when it was stolen from them and rebranded in Oklahoma City. For the scornful, that means one thing: Go Pacers. 'I'd love to see the Pacers pull it off in six games,' Ball said. The NBA Finals begin Thursday night. For some in Seattle, it'll be a heaping helping of fresh salt on the wounds that opened when the Sonics were taken away. And people like Ball, who grew up in Seattle hearing stories of Sonics legends like Shawn Kemp and Gary Payton, aren't exactly rooting for Oklahoma City right now. The Thunder are heavy favorites to beat the Pacers. Should they pull it off, the Thunder would claim their first NBA title in Oklahoma City, but technically their second as a franchise after Seattle won the title in 1979. It's no secret the city wants the league to come back. Expansion is on the NBA's to-do list, and it's likely that talks — the first of many, many steps in this process — could start in earnest with interested cities in the next few months. Commissioner Adam Silver, however, hasn't fully committed to adding new teams. 'The issue I would not have anticipated at the time I sort of began talking about the timeline is how much unknown there is about local media right now,' Silver said earlier this year. 'Having said that, though, I would just say again to our many fans in Seattle, and I hear from them often, and the legacy of the Sonics is still very strong and it's a fantastic basketball market, is that we are very focused on it. … We don't take those fans for granted. We're thankful that the interest has remained over all these years.' Any mention of expansion sends fans into a tizzy. Steve Ballmer, the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, spoke to the crowd before a preseason game in Seattle — his hometown — in 2023, and made a thinly veiled reference to how fans need to remind the league's New York office how much the city loves the game. 'All night long, it better be loud enough in this building to hear us all the way back in New York, if you get me,' Ballmer told the crowd. 'Let's make sure we're loud tonight.' And then came the Ballmer bellow: 'Go Seattle,' he screamed. It's something Seattle takes seriously, as Mayor Bruce Harrell learned earlier this year in his address to the city. 'Right now, at this moment, I have an announcement to make,' Harrell said, reaching into the lectern where he was standing and pulling out a basketball, spinning it in his hands as he displayed it to the crowd — which began roaring. 'Ah, I'm just kidding.' The crowd wasn't amused. Harrell later was interviewed by Seattle's KOMO News and apologized for the attempt at humor, getting reminded that residents of the city aren't happy that the NBA hasn't returned yet. 'Count me among them,' Harrell said. A very real void has been left in the SuperSonics' absence. The NHL's Seattle Kraken entering the fold has helped, as has the success of the WNBA's Seattle Storm, both of whom play at Climate Pledge Arena, which sits on the site of the SuperSonics' former home. That same arena received a significant remodel ahead of the Kraken arriving, which could make it suitable for NBA games. That would ultimately be up to the association to decide one day, but Ball hopes it would be the Sonics' former home in the Queen Anne neighborhood they get to triumphantly return to one day. 'A lot of Sonics fans that I know I'm sure never got over the wounds of what happened here 17 years ago with them leaving (for) Oklahoma City,' SuperSonics fan Eric Phan said. 'All of the Sonics fanbase (is) rooting for the Indiana Pacers.' Seattle seemed to have a chance at getting a team back in 2013 when the Maloof family put the Sacramento Kings up for sale. But investor Chris Hansen's bid to relocate the team to Seattle was rejected by the NBA's Board of Governors. For fans like Ball and Phan, hope lives on. Ball recognizes that's partially because he is an inherently positive person, and he's hoping for a Hollywood ending. 'It would be poetic if the year that OKC wins the finals — if that occurs — is in the same summer that the league comes out and says, 'Hey, we're forming an expansion committee to start really exploring this process,'' Ball said. 'I think that would help damper or therapize the feelings and emotions that would come along with seeing the Thunder hoist the Larry O'Brien.' Phan pointed out that just because the Sonics don't play in Seattle, it doesn't mean the team is truly gone. 'You can see people walking the sidewalks and streets of Seattle, and even the suburbs,' Phan said. 'People are wearing Sonics gear like they never really left.'
USA Today
41 minutes ago
- USA Today
When is the NBA Finals? Thunder, Pacers set to play for a title
When is the NBA Finals? Thunder, Pacers set to play for a title Show Caption Hide Caption Shaq gives thoughts on a possible Pacers-Thunder 'small market' Finals Shaq joins Sports Seriously to give his thoughts on if a Pacers-Thunder NBA Finals would be too 'small market' for the league. Sports Seriously What appears to be an obvious mismatch on paper still sets up for an intriguing battle as the 2025 NBA Finals get underway on Thursday. The No. 4-seeded Indiana Pacers completed a stunning run through an upset-filled Eastern Conference bracket to make their first appearance in the Finals since 2000, defeating the No. 3 New York Knicks in six games. Meanwhile the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder rolled through the Western Conference, defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves in five games to reach the Finals for the first time since 2012. Adding to the drama, neither franchise has won an NBA title in its current location. (The Thunder won it all in 1979, when they were the Seattle Supersonics.) OPINION: No one will stop the Thunder from winning NBA championship How to watch the NBA Finals The 2025 NBA Finals presented by YouTube TV will air on ABC. Fans can stream it on ESPN+, Fubo, and SlingTV. Watch the NBA Finals with Fubo 2025 NBA Finals schedule Game 1: Pacers at Thunder (Thursday, June 5, 8:30 ET, ABC) Pacers at Thunder (Thursday, June 5, 8:30 ET, ABC) Game 2: Pacers at Thunder (Sunday, June 8, 8 ET, ABC) Pacers at Thunder (Sunday, June 8, 8 ET, ABC) Game 3: Thunder at Pacers (Wednesday, June 11, 8:30 ET, ABC) Thunder at Pacers (Wednesday, June 11, 8:30 ET, ABC) Game 4: Thunder at Pacers (Friday, June 13, 8:30 ET, ABC) Thunder at Pacers (Friday, June 13, 8:30 ET, ABC) Game 5: Pacers at Thunder, (Monday, June 16, 8:30 ET, ABC)* Pacers at Thunder, (Monday, June 16, 8:30 ET, ABC)* Game 6: Thunder at Pacers (Thursday, June 19, 8:30 ET, ABC)* Thunder at Pacers (Thursday, June 19, 8:30 ET, ABC)* Game 7: Pacers at Thunder, Sunday, June 22, 8 ET on ABC)* The biggest stories, every morning. Stay up-to-date on all the key sports developments by subscribing to USA TODAY Sports' newsletter.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
NBA Finals 2025: 'I can guarantee we'll be cheering for OKC' — Why sportsbooks are rooting for the Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are the largest NBA Finals favorites (-700 at BetMGM) in their franchise's history against the Indiana Pacers (+500), but sportsbooks will still be cheering for Oklahoma City when the series tips off Thursday night. "The Thunder have been our best result just about the entire playoffs," Halvor Egeland, BetMGM trading manager told Yahoo Sports. "That remains the case and with where the finals pricing is, I can guarantee we'll be cheering on OKC." Advertisement Sportsbooks were helped in the futures market tremendously by the Los Angeles Lakers losing in the first round to the Minnesota Timberwolves in five games. The Lakers were BetMGM's biggest liability "by a decent margin" to win the title, and among those bets was a $100,000 wager on Los Angeles at 10-1 odds that would've won $1 million. The Golden State Warriors, Denver Nuggets, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics all were potential hazards for sportsbooks — and all were eliminated before the conference finals. "Our best result is Oklahoma City," Jeff Sherman, vice president of risk at the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook said. "Their odds were low enough all season that liability didn't accumulate. They were one of our best scenarios going into the playoffs, and we do very well on them." Indeed, the Thunder's longest odds came before the season, when they were 10-1 to win it all at BetMGM for three total days last June. Oklahoma City was a +185 favorite entering the postseason and -175 entering the conference finals against the Timberwolves. The Thunder at -700 are tied for the seventh-biggest favorite in the NBA Finals since 1968, according to Sports Odds History. Advertisement The Pacers, on the other hand, opened as a long shot with 50-1 odds, and those odds got as high as 150-1 in March. Even entering the playoffs, Indiana was 80-1 to win the title, and the Pacers didn't get into single digits until before the conference finals against the New York Knicks, when they were +800 to win the title. Indiana wasn't even the favorite (+135) in its series against New York. 'Many bettors have backed the Pacers during a playoff run that includes taking down the top-seeded Cavs and the high-profile Knicks with multiple dramatic comebacks," Adrian Horton, director of North American sports trading for ESPN Bet, said. "Given their relatively long price compared to OKC, who have taken care of business as a 1-seed, it's the Pacers who are our bigger liability today.' BetMGM told Yahoo Sports there are "a couple" of Pacers futures wagers with a chance to win six figures at 125-1 odds. Sherman said Westgate took a $400 wager on Indiana at 150-1 in mid-February, along with two $200 wagers at that price, making Indiana a "small liability." Not many bettors were backing Indiana down the stretch of the regular season, despite the Pacers now sporting a record of 46-18 since Jan. 1. Advertisement "Certainly for the Eastern Conference futures, having the Pacers come through was a huge win," Thomas Gable, sportsbook director at The Borgata in Atlantic City (a BetMGM book) noted. "We had liability on both the Knicks and Celtics and were pretty much break even on the Cavs. The Pacers were pretty much ignored in the futures all year." Likely due to the big potential payout, bettors have been backing Indiana to beat Oklahoma City, with a staggering 92% of the bets and 91% of the total dollars wagered so far on the Pacers to win the finals. If the Pacers pull off the stunner, it would be the biggest NBA Finals upset since 2004 when the Detroit Pistons (+500) beat the Los Angeles Lakers in five games. Game 1 tips off at 8:30 p.m. ET Thursday on ABC. The Thunder are 9.5-point favorites, with the total at 230.5.
