Knicks vs. Pacers set for Eastern Conference finals. Here's the full schedule for the series.

CBS News

21-05-2025

The New York Knicks and the Indiana Pacers face off for Game 1 of the NBA's Eastern Conference finals tonight at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
This is the Knicks' first trip to the Eastern Conference finals in 25 years, and the winner of the series will head to the NBA Finals.
"It's obviously a storied rivalry between the two franchises, so to add another chapter to it is going to be a lot of fun," Tyrese Haliburton said.
It sure was for Haliburton and the Pacers last year when the teams met in the second round. Indiana won Game 7 at Madison Square Garden against a Knicks team that was decimated by injuries, shooting an NBA playoff-record 67.1% from the field in a 130-109 romp. Haliburton scored 26 points and afterward wore a sweatshirt to his news conference with a picture of Reggie Miller making a choke signal toward Knicks fan Spike Lee on the sidelines during a playoff game three decades earlier.
"Obviously, Knicks fans and Pacers fans, they go back and forth. But I think he did a great job with it last year, but now we're moving on," Brunson said.
The teams met six times in an eight-year span, starting with a 1993 series that included John Starks getting ejected for head-butting Miller. Indiana won the last one in that stretch, a victory in the 2000 East finals the most recent time the Knicks advanced this far.
This time, it's a surprise. Cleveland and Boston ran away to the top two records in the East, but the Knicks ousted the defending champions and the Pacers blew away the top-seeded Cavaliers in five games to set up this matchup between the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds.
Things are different now. Brunson and Haliburton are friendly, having been teammates in 2023 on the U.S. team that played in the Basketball World Cup. But Miller will be in the arena, working the games as an analyst for TNT, so there will be a reminder of the way Knicks-Pacers used to be.
"There was definitely a sense of hatred for each other. So I think that makes a good rivalry," Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns said. "They have a history of finding a way to end each other's season, so it's up to us now to add our names into history and see what we do."
Knicks vs. Pacers Eastern Conference finals schedule
Game 1 at New York on Wednesday
Game 2 at New York on Friday
Game 3 at Indiana on Sunday
Game 4 at Indiana on May 27
Game 5 at New York on May 29 (if necessary)
Game 6 at Indiana on May 31 (if necessary)
Game 7 at New York on June 2 (if necessary)
Knicks watch party and ticket warning
While there won't be an outdoor watch party for Game 1, fans can buy $10 tickets for a watch party inside Radio City Music Hall.
Meanwhile, Gov. Kathy Hochul is warning people to be careful when buying tickets for the series.
"As the Knicks continue their incredible run, I understand the excitement and pride fans across New York are feeling — it's electric," Hochul said in a statement Tuesday. "But I want to remind everyone: don't let that excitement make you a target. Be cautious when buying tickets and only use trusted sources. Scammers are out there, and we won't let them take advantage of our fans."
Road to Eastern Conference finals
New York knocked out Detroit in six games in the first round and then ended Boston's championship reign after one year by beating the Celtics in six in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The Pacers needed just five games to eliminate Milwaukee in the first round and top-seeded Cleveland in the second and lead all teams in the postseason in field goal shooting (50.1%), 3-point rate (40.6) and assists per game (29.7).
Reigniting a rivalry
A fierce playoff rivalry from the 1990s is back again and this time is a bit of a surprise, as the Knicks and Pacers finished well behind Cleveland and Boston in the Eastern Conference.
This is the ninth matchup between the franchises, with Indiana leading 5-3. That includes the Pacers' victory in the 2000 Eastern Conference finals, the previous time the Knicks made it this far, and their win last year when they beat the Knicks in seven games in the second round.
Jalen Brunson vs. Tyrese Haliburton
Brunson vs. Haliburton is going to be a key matchup — but also Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Bennedict Mathurin, Ben Sheppard and T.J. McConnell.
The two point guards are the headline names in the series but Pacers coach Rick Carlisle mentioned all those players as options to defend Brunson, who played for him in Dallas before blossoming into a superstar in New York.
"Step by step"
An NBA Finals matchup between the Knicks and Minnesota Timberwolves is a possibility after they made a blockbuster trade on the eve of the preseason. The Knicks acquired Towns by sending Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo to Minnesota. Towns, the Wolves' No. 1 pick in 2015, isn't thinking about that yet.
"We've got to get there first," he said. "I ain't going to worry about something that we're not there yet. Step by step."