Knicks fans haven’t woken up from ‘nightmare’ Game 1 loss to Pacers

Wednesday night was a nightmare for Knicks fans. Thursday hasn’t proved to be any better.

Rather, it’s a worse version of “Groundhog Day” that fans haven’t woken up from.

Throughout social media it appears fans are having a difficult time trying to cope after watching the disaster of the Knicks losing a 14-point lead to the Pacers to become the first franchise to drop a playoff game with that much of a lead with 2:45 left.

“The Knicks had to do everything wrong in the final 2 minutes to give the Pacers a chance… AND the Pacers had to do everything right. That’s what happened, capped by a miracle bounce. I’m still in disbelief,” Knicks Memes posted on X.

Warning: Graphic Language

“Good morning Knicks fans… who else woke up feeling sick about last night? Who else slept poorly thinking of all the missed calls, all the turnovers, missed goaltend to a transition 3 in OT… absolutely brutal,” a fan posted.

“Good morning Knicks fans, I just woke up for work this early morning I feel like I had a really bad nightmare,” another said.

Tyrese Haliburton makes a choke gesture after hitting a game-tying, buzzer-beating shot in the fourth quarter against the Knicks on May 21, 2025. AP

The rainy weather has only reflected the mood of the city, who likely slogged to work, school, and other obligations with imaginative clouds over their heads.

“Knicks fans needed this rain today. I would have been furious if I had to deal with the sun this morning,” a fan posted on X on Thursday morning.

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Concerns were also voiced about coffee lines at Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts being filled with Knicks fans trying to get through the day.

“Considering seeing many Knicks fans had a hard time trying to sleep last night, I bet the @Starbucks & @dunkindonuts around the NYC area are really making a huge shilling of $$$ this morning with the coffee trying to keep ppl awake today,” an X user wrote.

Knicks fans react during the team’s overtime loss to the Pacers on May 21, 2025. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

A basketball film analyst also wrote a story “to make sense of being a fan when the pain feels too real to make any sense at all.”

In the shared excerpt on X, it says: “What happened last night brought that memory back in full. It yanked it from storage and threw it out on the front lawn. Along with it came the very same sports heartache that shaped so much of my young life. I did not know I could still feel that kind of pain. I am married. I have two amazing kids. I assumed I had built up some sort of immunity to the deepest level of sports anguish. I am built for this! How wrong I was.”

The Ringer’s John Jastremski promoted his podcast episode about the game at 2:46 a.m. on Thursday. At 10:06 a.m., he retweeted the post saying, “Still in a state of shock after that one…”.

Jonathan Marci of “Knicks Film Skool” did his typical daily morning announcement for the Knicks, but in a somber mood.

“Ending with a regulation moment where Tyrese Haliburton made the choke sign, reminiscent of Reggie Miller some 31 years ago and it was absolutely, 110% deserved,” he said. “They choked and they should be embarrassed and ashamed of themselves. Have a great day.”

Game 2 is slated for Friday at 8 p.m. at Madison Square Garden where the Knicks will hope to even the series before heading to Indiana for Games 3 and 4.