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[Saba Sports News] Tyrese Haliburton didn’t let Ben Stiller slide after some pregame trolling from the Hollywood star.
Stiller, a diehard New York Knicks fan, reposted a video of Haliburton arriving at Gainbridge Fieldhouse ahead of Saturday’s pivotal Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. In the clip, the Pacers guard was dressed in all black and carrying a black duffel bag — a look many interpreted as funereal for the Knicks.
Stiller joked, “Good thing he brought his duffel for the flight to NY,” implying the Pacers were headed back to Madison Square Garden for a Game 7.
But much like Stiller’s character’s first meeting with Robert De Niro in Meet the Parents, things didn’t go according to plan.
Haliburton put up 21 points and dished out a game-high 13 assists in a 125-108 rout that sent the Pacers to their first NBA Finals since 2000. After the win, Haliburton fired back at Stiller on social media, “Nah, was to pack y’all up,” he replied.
Haliburton starred throughout the series, averaging 21.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 10.5 assists per game. Though he narrowly lost out on the ECF MVP to teammate Pascal Siakam, Haliburton’s postseason breakout has firmly established him as one of the league’s rising faces — and now, a celebrity roaster too.