Inside Pat McAfee's deep bond with Indiana as Pacers look to seize glory in the NBA Finals

Daily Mail​

a day ago

Hours before Pat McAfee delivered a rousing pep talk to Pacers fans on Wednesday night, a swarm of his supporters stayed long after the conclusion of his show for a chance at some facetime with the ESPN star.
Outside the Gainbridge Fieldhouse, where McAfee set up shop for his hit program, one fan held up a baby as others shouted for the host to kiss it. Inside the arena later that night during Game 3 of the NBA Finals, he was handed the mic with the game firmly in the balance.
'Everybody's talking about the OKC fans are the loudest, the OKC fans have the best fans in the league,' he said during the fourth quarter of the Pacers' eventual win over the Thunder.
'What the world is about to witness is the loudest building in the history of ball! Let's turn this s*** up!'
The rallying cry from McAfee - who previously referred to the Knicks' traveling contingent of Timothee Chalamet, Ben Stiller and Spike Lee as 'sons of b*****es* - wasn't overly shocking from the boisterous ESPN personality, who has been a fixture at Pacers games this postseason.
But both that moment and the scenes from his show's set earlier in the day are emblematic of the bond he's formed with Indiana since the Colts drafted him in 2009.
The Plum, Pennsylvania native spent eight seasons punting for them before walking away from the game at just 29 years old.
But while he's no longer suiting up for the Colts, he's remained rooted in the area.
He still lives nearby in a mansion, while his eponymous show is filmed from the Thunderdome, a cutting-edge studio in the outskirts of Indianapolis which was unveiled in 2022 (as part of his previous deal with FanDuel).
This week, though, Indianapolis' famous son came under fire after a report from The Athletic's Andrew Marchand claimed McAfee had 'essentially banned' Adam Schefter from his show since March after the insider wasn't able to appear on the program one day.
The report also stated that McAfee was upset during one 'College GameDay' stop last year when he was shown swinging and missing against a softball pitcher - even reportedly demanding to be told which staffer on the show put it on air.
On Thursday, however, Schefter made his return to the show, as McAfee called out Marchand as a 'rat.'
A day earlier, the polarizing commentator stepped outside the confines of his studio to tape his show in front of Gainbridge Fieldhouse ahead of Game 3, and the support for him was palpable.
In just a short period of time observed after the show had wrapped up, there were myriad examples of just how beloved the host is.
One fan brought a McAfee-themed WWE action figure, while another proudly brandished his college jersey from the University of West Virginia.
One even brought a picture of his mugshot, which stemmed from alleged public intoxication in 2010. Another group of teens desperately tried to get him in their selfie.
Overall, as a large group of fans - mostly fully-grown men - stayed after McAfee's show was done taping, it was clear that the love goes both ways.
The 38-year-old took plenty of time to chat with his fans, with some conversations running so long that he was hardly moving along to others.
At another point, there were oohh's and aahh's as he attempted to sink a long range three-pointer from his show's set. He was unsuccessful, though that didn't damper the mood much.
The adopted Hoosier's connection to the state has also been seen under unfortunate circumstances recently.
Late last month, he mourned the death of Colts owner Jim Irsay with a heartbreaking tribute.
'Jim had friendships with a lot of his former players.. I was lucky to be one of them,' McAfee began on X, hours after the Colts announced Irsay had died in his sleep.
'Playing for a team that Mr Irsay ran was an honor. He was funny, brilliant, unique, and somehow still wildly relatable for a man who became the sole owner of an NFL team at the age of 37...'
On Wednesday, as the Pacers earned a crucial 116-107 win, McAfee was in higher spirits.
He wasn't the only celebrity in the crowd, as actor Terry Crews was in attendance, while Caitlin Clark and her Indiana Fever teammates also sat courtside to cheer on their brother franchise.
McAfee, though, has developed a unique sort of rapport with Pacers fans, who went wild after he challenged them to get loud early in the fourth quarter.
From there, the hosts finished out the game with poise, ultimately outscoring the Thunder 32-18 in the final quarter to give the franchise its first home Finals win since 2000.
Perhaps it's hyperbolic to say McAfee's speech inspired that result.