Here's what went wrong for the Knicks at the end of Game 1 against the Pacers, and how they can learn from their mistakes.

Still, because Haliburton's foot was on the line, the Knicks could avoid making history if they could recover in overtime. Instead, it was much of the same as the Pacers kept rolling, with Andrew Nembhard doing most of the damage with seven points in the extra period.

In a disaster of epic proportions, the Knicks squandered a 17-point fourth-quarter lead in Game 1 and are the first team in NBA playoff history to blow a lead of 14 or more points with 2:45 remaining. Teams were previously 994-0 in the playoffs, but the Knicks’ collapse didn’t come from nowhere.

Even in the big 2025, certain situations can still be too good to be true. Just ask one Kalshi bettor who lost nearly $10,000 when the New York Knicks improbably collapsed against the Indiana Pacers. A Kalshi user risked $9,626 to win $77 when the Knicks had a 99% chance to win Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

The New York Knicks were less than one minute away from taking a 1-0 lead over the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals at a frenzied Madison Square Garden before suffering a crushing defeat,

Jalen Brunson had just tied Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing's franchise record by reaching 30 points in the playoffs for the 18th time with the New York Knicks. Then the Knicks hit the Indiana Pacers with a 14-0 run after Brunson had to go to the bench early in the fourth quarter Wednesday night after picking up his fifth foul,

Knicks fans were ready to celebrate a certain Game 1 win. Then there was an inexplicable and painful loss as the party turned into a wake.

"He got too much air space," Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said of Nesmith after the game.