Wally Szczerbiak vindicated by Knicks fans after Tyrese Haliburton’s Game 1 dud

The pendulum is swinging way too hard towards the opposite direction now; Haliburton, for all his warts, remains one of the most talented floor generals in the NBA. But the Knicks fans can talk all the smack they want. After all, for Haliburton to join the club of true superstardom, he has to play at a much better level. Perhaps he uses this trash talk as fuel the same way he used Wally Szczerbiak’s fiery words in December 2022 as motivation to get better.

Jalen Brunson outduels Tyrese Haliburton

The past three postseasons have proven that Jalen Brunson absolutely has that dawg in him. Brunson is a playoff riser who seems impervious to any defensive coverage. His footwork and handle allows him to get to his spots with ease, his ability to change pace is nearly unmatched, and he never shies away from the responsibility of being the first option, even if it means chucking up a lot of shots.

Brunson is currently averaging 36.6 points in the playoffs on 44.3 percent shooting from the field — all the while taking 28.7 shots per game. A cursory look at Brunson’s number of shot attempts may lead one to think that he’s hogging the ball. But who else on the Knicks roster is going to do the heavy lifting other than him? He has embraced the Madison Square Garden spotlight, taking whatever the defense is giving him with his three-level scoring mastery.

Meanwhile, Tyrese Haliburton’s confidence appears to be shot. Taking six shots in a crucial Game 1, which the Pacers could have won had he played better by the way, is inexcusable. He was tied for the second-fewest shot attempts on his team in Game 1, tying Aaron Nesmith and only attempting one more shot than Ben Sheppard did. For a man the Pacers look at as their franchise player, this level of play simply would not cut it.

Did Knicks fans poke the bear?

Tyrese Haliburton may be dealing with a knock to his back, which is limiting his play. But the Knicks did a wonderful job in Game 1 to bait out Haliburton’s worst instincts. He is a pass-first player who loves to pull up from three (more than half his shot-attempts this past season came from beyond the arc). The Knicks’ solution was to go over screens and bait Haliburton in bringing out his midrange game, which he wasn’t particularly comfortable with.

However, Haliburton is someone who uses hatred to fuel his play; Knicks fans may not want to get too comfortable giving him bulletin board material especially this early in the series. Game 1 was his worst playoff outing yet, but surely the Pacers would want to get him in his preferred spots more often — perhaps giving him more open looks from three off screens while giving him more space to work with on handoffs.

But the Knicks fanbase, again, is as passionate as it gets. They will be undaunted in talking smack. It’s up to Haliburton not to give them any reasons to jaw off.