The city was electric, the energy was through the roof, and Knicks fans were going crazy as they celebrated the Knicks advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since the 1999-00 season on Friday evening.
Things unexpectedly took a quick turn as a man caught in a Pacers jersey walking through the middle of the celebration became the victim of harassment and garbage being thrown at him by multiple Knicks fans. The man's name was Hanz Perez, and he received the surprise and gift of a lifetime on Monday morning.
Tyrese Haliburton surprises bullied fan
Former Indianapolis Colts punter and now sports media host Pat McAfee invited Hanz onto his program on Monday morning to discuss what had happened in New York City that evening. Macafee then surprised the man by inviting Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton onto the show.
Haliburton then extended an offer to him, along with a plus-one invitation, to attend the first game of the Eastern Conference Finals to support his Pacers. “Our whole organization wants to make sure you’re treated right," Haliburton said. "The entire team is excited to meet you. You’ve been the talk of the locker room.”
Tyrese Haliburton has been at the forefront of scrutiny, hate, and being unnecessarily ridiculed for a few years now. In an anonymous poll by The Athletic, Haliburton was voted the most overrated player in the NBA by his peers. At least one player from all 30 teams took part in the poll.
More recently in these playoffs, Haliburton would hear the chants from both the Milwaukee and Cleveland crowd chanting at him, "OVER-RATED."
"That one was unexpected," Haliburton said after his game-winning 3-pointer against the Cavs in Game 2. "I didn't know we had beef. Yeah. I guess good for them. That one came out of nowhere."
Haliburton added: "I think now that that label's there, that's going to be every time we play somebody. Every time we're on the road, it will probably follow me until the next poll comes out, and we'll see if I'm No. 1 again ... For me, I just control what I can, man. And yeah. Overrate that."
Pascal Siakam defends Tyrese
Pacers forward and teammate Pascal Siakam voiced his opinion on The Athletic's anonymous poll by sticking up for Tyrese.
“He makes us go, so we’re gonna ride with Tyrese until the wheels fall off,” said Siakam. “He can impact the game, not just by scoring, but being able to open the floor up for everybody else, put everybody in the right positions and doing it with swag.
Pascal added: “So, at the end of the day, some people are gonna like it. Some people are not gonna like it. I think he’s an unselfish player out there when he plays, and he has one thing in mind — to win.”
Through five NBA seasons, Haliburton has two All-Star selections, made the All-NBA third team last year, and won a gold medal with Team USA in the Paris Olympics this past summer. Haliburton has been nothing short of a great leader and role model both on-and-off the court, and this act of kindness is just the latest example of what he represents.