Latest / Bleacher Report / Tyrese Haliburton Talks Game-Tying Buzzer-Beater & Game 1 Comeback vs. Knicks _ 2025 NBA Playoffs

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Tyrese Haliburton Talks Game-Tying Buzzer-Beater & Game 1 Comeback vs. Knicks _ 2025 NBA Playoffs · Bleacher Report

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: No, hell no, did you think it was in the moment,
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: Uh yeah, yeah for sure.
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  Speaker 2: But quickly in my celebration somebody said it was a two,
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  Speaker 2: and uh yeah, then my focus just became winning it.
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  Speaker 2: You know, how we how we could you know, win
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  Speaker 2: the game? And I thought we did a great job
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  Speaker 2: of sticking with it in overtime, just making big play
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  Speaker 2: after big play. You know, obviously you know Aaron's heroics,
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: aren't I mean, I hope they've talked about it. They
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  Speaker 2: can't be talked about enough. You know, he was amazing
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  Speaker 2: down the stretch. Oh we had a big put back
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  Speaker 2: dunk which I had a lot of different guys contribute
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  Speaker 2: to make plays, and uh yeah, it's really proud of
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  Speaker 2: our group.
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  Speaker 1: In the moment.
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  Speaker 2: I mean, I wasn't like plotting out in or anything.
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  Speaker 2: I just everybody wanted me to do it, like last
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  Speaker 2: year at some different point. But it's just gotta just
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: gotta feel right, and it felt right at the time.
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  Speaker 2: If it would have been if if if I would
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  Speaker 2: have known it was a two, I I would not
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  Speaker 2: have done it. Uh So I think I might have
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  Speaker 2: wasted it. Uh if I do it again, then I
• 0:59
  Speaker 2: might be People said I'm like ooral farming, So I'm
• 1:02
  Speaker 2: not Uh, I don't plan on using it again.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, special man, I think double A works his tail off. Uh.
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  Speaker 2: You know, I think each shot that he made just
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  Speaker 2: kept giving us more confidence that we could, you know,
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  Speaker 2: really win this game. So uh, he was really big
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  Speaker 2: for us. And I think to do what he did
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  Speaker 2: today while also having to guard Jaylen Brunson for probably
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  Speaker 2: thirty minutes is it's very difficult to do. So uh,
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  Speaker 2: like I said, he what Aaron Eisman did today can't
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  Speaker 2: be talked about enough. And uh, he was really proud
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  Speaker 2: of his effort in our group's effort the air, No
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  Speaker 2: I knew, I'm like it's going in, you know, It's
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  Speaker 2: just felt like got stuck up there though, you know.
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  Speaker 1: And honestly, when it like went in, I was like all.
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  Speaker 2: My eyes might have been deceiving me in the moment, uh,
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  Speaker 2: but it felt it felt good would have left my hands,
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  Speaker 2: so uh, you know, I thought it was going to
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  Speaker 2: go in, and you know, just the ball Feller was
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  Speaker 2: up there for eternity. But man, just a special moment.
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  Speaker 1: Kind of a team and what is it about doing
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  Speaker 1: stuff that nobody else? Yeah?
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  Speaker 2: Well, I mean I would I would like to not
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  Speaker 2: keep being in this situation. But I think we're just
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  Speaker 2: a group that I spent a lot of time, you know,
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  Speaker 2: with each other. And I think the front office's decision
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  Speaker 2: to keep you know, the majority of our group together
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  Speaker 2: basically our you know, our whole team together essentially after
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  Speaker 2: last year, I think it was really big because we've been.
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  Speaker 1: Through everything together.
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  Speaker 2: We've been on like, you know, big losing skids, big
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  Speaker 2: winning winning runs, had to win in so many different ways,
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  Speaker 2: so many guys had to step up and make big shots,
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  Speaker 2: and I think that's just you know, I think in
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  Speaker 2: the NBA, you don't see a ton of continuity from
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  Speaker 2: year to year, right It's you know, how many teams
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  Speaker 2: are changing from year to year. And I think our
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  Speaker 2: front office did a great job of keeping this group together.
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  Speaker 2: And I think that this just gives us all confidence
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  Speaker 2: and eat each other, like we feel like we know
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  Speaker 2: where everybody's gonna be. Uh, we expect, you know, we
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  Speaker 2: have high expectations for each other. But I think we
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  Speaker 2: also have like we hold each other accountable at the
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  Speaker 2: same time, you know. I think that's important. And I've
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  Speaker 2: seen people joke about us and call us like we're
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  Speaker 2: like a college team a little bit because of how
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  Speaker 2: close we are and you know, how we've been together
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  Speaker 2: and we're all super young and whatever the case may be.
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  Speaker 2: But man, it's just, uh it's special and just you know,
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  Speaker 2: I love playing with these guys, and you know the
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  Speaker 2: ford to you know, keep just run going about the gesture.
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  Speaker 1: How much do you know about where that came from
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  Speaker 1: in the game, where Reggie did it, and sort of
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  Speaker 1: what happened.
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  Speaker 2: I've seen that winning time doc probably like fifty times
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  Speaker 2: growing up, so I know that they didn't win the series,
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  Speaker 2: so I would not like to repeat that. But you know,
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  Speaker 2: I think that's just a historic moment. And that was
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  Speaker 2: obviously more him versus Spike, kind of the one on one,
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  Speaker 2: and that just felt like it was to everybody, but
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  Speaker 2: but to him too. I want to I want him
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  Speaker 2: to see more than anything. But I think this is
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  Speaker 2: really cool to continue to you know, make my own
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  Speaker 2: history in this group, to make our own history, uh
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  Speaker 2: while also showing you know, respect and love to the
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  Speaker 2: the ones that came before. So definitely a special moment,
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  Speaker 2: and yeah, I won't.
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  Speaker 1: Forget in the last round.
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  Speaker 2: Rechie was the next game they ever come back, and
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  Speaker 2: the basket the fourth quarter.
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  Speaker 1: He said, this is the best fourth quarter closer in
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  Speaker 1: the game right here? Is it? Right?
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  Speaker 2: Who that you maybe you right out away you play
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  Speaker 2: in these.
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  Speaker 1: Playoffs, soever you want it to be. Yeah about something boring,
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  Speaker 1: like you guys, that's not boring. I love talking about that.
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  Speaker 1: Come on, you know, come back to seventeen. Do you
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  Speaker 1: think were relentless pressure?
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  Speaker 2: Do you think that that wore them down a little bit?
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  Speaker 2: I think maybe you could say that, you know, they
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  Speaker 2: missed a couple of free throws there down the stretch,
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  Speaker 2: had a couple short misses there at the end of
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  Speaker 2: the game. Sure for coach's sake, if for coach speak, Yeah,
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  Speaker 2: the wear down effect was, you know, in full effect
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  Speaker 2: right there. But I think the way you got to
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  Speaker 2: approach this game and approach the series is that it's
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  Speaker 2: gonna be a seven game series that we played in
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  Speaker 2: thirteen days.
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  Speaker 1: Right.
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  Speaker 2: So that's how we've been That's how we're approaching it
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  Speaker 2: and looking at it. And you gotta take it one
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  Speaker 2: day at a time. So, you know, I think just
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  Speaker 2: trying to wear on these guys as.
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  Speaker 1: Much a we can.
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  Speaker 2: Obviously, their starters play a lot of minutes, you know,
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  Speaker 2: I thought, you know, obviously with some foul troubles, some
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  Speaker 2: other guys had to play a little bit more. They
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  Speaker 2: had to line up out there that probably hasn't played
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  Speaker 2: together a ton, but was really effective for them there.
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  Speaker 1: So we've got to do a better job there.
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  Speaker 2: But I think, yeah, I think it's hard for me
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  Speaker 2: to discredit and say that the wear down effect wasn't there.
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  Speaker 2: You know, I think from everything you're seeing that that's
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  Speaker 2: a part of it, and I think that's a part
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  Speaker 2: of our identity. How can we wear on teams for
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  Speaker 2: forty eight minutes obviously picking up full court, but you know,
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  Speaker 2: as well as our offensive pressure, getting downhill, moving playing fast.
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  Speaker 2: You know, I thought that we did a good job
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  Speaker 2: offensively of playing our style.
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  Speaker 1: You know.
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  Speaker 2: You know, they went on that little run there obviously
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  Speaker 2: got a pretty big lead there. Uh, But I thought
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  Speaker 2: we did a great job of you know, Pascal had
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  Speaker 2: and one on Cat and we just you know, kept
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  Speaker 2: coming and kept coming and kept coming. And I think
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  Speaker 2: that was really big for us, getting make an extra
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  Speaker 2: extra player, getting extra possessions with offensive rebounds or finishing
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  Speaker 2: getting rebounds on that side. I think they were all
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  Speaker 2: big down the stretch. So yeah, I think, uh, for
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  Speaker 2: coach Carlisle's sake, will say the word don't effect was
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  Speaker 2: was was in full effect.
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  Speaker 1: Moment. I mean, I uh.
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  Speaker 2: I think every person who enjoys basketball or by everybody
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  Speaker 2: in here imagined at one point that they would be
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  Speaker 2: an NBA player or something, you know. And I think
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  Speaker 2: the biggest thing when you're growing up, as everybody's in
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  Speaker 2: the in the on the playground or in the driveway
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  Speaker 2: or in the gym by themselves, you're five four to three,
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  Speaker 2: you want shooting it and if you miss it, nobody's around,
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  Speaker 2: so we'll put more time on the clock, right. And
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  Speaker 2: I think for me, I was always encouraged me just
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  Speaker 2: to have an imagination, right, so I would be running
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  Speaker 2: down the hallway in my childhood home pretending there was
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  Speaker 2: a hoop and you know, playing basketball and all those things.
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  Speaker 2: And I think that the biggest thing for me is
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  Speaker 2: I already have the confidence to take the shot in
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  Speaker 2: the moment, but I have that confidence from my group.
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  Speaker 2: My group wants me to take those shots. My coaching
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  Speaker 2: staff wants me to take those shots.
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  Speaker 1: You know.
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  Speaker 2: I think our organization wants me to take those shots.
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  Speaker 2: And I think now we're at the point where our fans
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  Speaker 2: want me to take that shot, you know, so I
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  Speaker 2: think everybody's living and dying with it at that point.
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  Speaker 1: That gives me a lot of confidence. And to be
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  Speaker 1: honest with.
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  Speaker 2: You, Like when I got traded here, you know, we
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  Speaker 2: weren't very good, and so we would be in these
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  Speaker 2: moments where I would have to take these shots and
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  Speaker 2: I would miss them and nobody would care that maybe
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  Speaker 2: Patier fans would, but like we weren't very good, so
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  Speaker 2: it didn't matter a playoff team or anything. So I
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  Speaker 2: feel like that kind of like baptism by fire almost.
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  Speaker 2: To to to do that and then now be in
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  Speaker 2: these situations where obviously they matter on such a bigger scale,
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  Speaker 2: I think is important for me. So I really think
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  Speaker 2: that experience is the best best teacher for me, and
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  Speaker 2: I've I've had that as as times went on.
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  Speaker 1: We have time for like a couple more. We have
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  Speaker 1: a boss here in about four.
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  Speaker 2: Minutes, so obviously have a lot of recentness.
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  Speaker 1: Going back to the people who worked up and then
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  Speaker 1: last year in the playoffs and then.
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  Speaker 2: You guys stay at each other down at w W
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  Speaker 2: ring and now you're back.
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  Speaker 1: Here in the conference finals. Just a game like this
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  Speaker 1: against him, What does it mean for you the journey?
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  Speaker 1: I mean, he's a great player.
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  Speaker 2: I love competing against him, you know. I know maybe
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  Speaker 2: I'm not supposed to say that, like we're friends, but
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  Speaker 2: I I love competing against that guy. And I think
• 8:50
  Speaker 2: just love competing, you know, in general. And I think
• 8:52
  Speaker 2: the story rivalry between the Pagers and Nicks is really cool.
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  Speaker 2: But I think where we are right now it's that
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  Speaker 2: could you know, how much does it really matter? You know,
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  Speaker 2: we're writing our own stories right now, and so I
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  Speaker 2: think where we are is a special time and something
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  Speaker 2: that it's gonna be remembered by, you know, fans of
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  Speaker 2: the Pacers, Pans and the Nicks, you know, moving forward.
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  Speaker 2: So just really really especially competing against him, and just
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  Speaker 2: compete in general.
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  Speaker 1: Huh uh.
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  Speaker 2: When we got down, like was I sixteen seventeen or
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  Speaker 2: let's get it to ten, let's get to five, you know,
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  Speaker 2: I think just trying to walk walk them down. You know,
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  Speaker 2: there's no seventeen point shot, you know. So I think
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  Speaker 2: we did a great job of just chipping away, chipping away,
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  Speaker 2: chipping away, and good things happened for us.
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  Speaker 1: We have time for one more. Did you get a
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  Speaker 1: chance to interact with Reggie after the game or anything
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  Speaker 1: I wanted to see.
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  Speaker 2: See it, uh after me, after I did my post
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  Speaker 2: came in every week locked eyes, and I had a
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  Speaker 2: little moment. I didn't want to go over there because
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  Speaker 2: it's obviously pretty hectic over there, but we communicate pretty often,
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  Speaker 2: so uh, definitely a special time and yeah, really cool
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  Speaker 2: he's in the building for that.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you, guys understanding