Pat McAfee Rips Celebrity Knicks Fans to Pump Up Pacers

Talk show host, media personality and former NFL specialist Pat McAfee went to uncensored lengths to ensure that his Indiana Pacers would reach the precipice of punting the New York Knicks from the NBA Playoffs.

The former Indianapolis Colts punter and current host of a nationally-syndicated, eponymous sports talk show went viral on Tuesday night for his NSFW Pacer pump-up in the latter stages of the most recent Eastern Conference Finals tilt between New York and Indiana. McAfee took aim at the plethora of celebrity Knicks fans in attendance for Game 4 of the best-of-seven set, listing them off to a chorus of increasingly louder boos as Indiana closed in on a vital victory on their home floor of Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

“Indianapolis, Indiana, we got some bigwigs from the big city in the building,” McAfee said in video placed on iPacers.com's X page. “Spike Lee is here. Ben Stiller is here. Timothée Chalamet is here. Let’s send these sons of b*****s back to New York with their ears ringing. Let’s turn this s**t up!”

At the time of McAfee's WWE-style pump-up, the Pacers led the Knicks by 15 with just about 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter. The series was heading back to New York in any event but the subsequent 130-121 victory for the hosting Pacers turns Thursday's get-together into an elimination game for the Knicks, who have never overcome a 3-1 deficit in a playoff set.

Metropolitan sports fans are perhaps familiar with the styles of McAfee, who would frequently host eventful interviews with former New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers. McAfee has also dabbled in professional wresting (currently serving as a color commentator for WWE Raw on Netflix), so seeing him take the mike to play a heel for Manhattan is hardly shocking. 

While it's hardly a surprise to see celebrities clad in Knicks gear, it's somewhat rare to see them, beyond the everlasting presence of Lee, make the trip for road games. This postseason trip, of course, has proven special, as New York is in the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2000.

That has partly led to a celebrity caravan of sorts to follow the Knicks through their road journeys, with younger New Yorkers being particularly intrigued by the animated fandom of Chalamet, the normally-reserved thespian known for award-chasing fare such as "A Complete Unknown" and "Dune."

However, egged on McAfee, the Pacers have pushed the Knicks toward a devastating final cut, one that could come in front of Manhattan's finest on Thursday night.

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