WATCH: Charlie Ward’s first address as FAMU’s men’s basketball coach
Charlie Ward is the head coach of the FAMU Rattlers men’s basketball team.
The New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers are facing each other in the Eastern Conference Finals for the second consecutive year.Former Knicks point guard and current Florida A&M basketball coach Charlie Ward reflects on the historic rivalry between the two teams.Ward attended Game 1 of the current series and witnessed Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton’s game-tying shot at the buzzer.The Knicks and Pacers have a history of playoff battles, featuring Hall of Famers Patrick Ewing and Reggie Miller.
A rivalry pits two teams against each other in the name of vehement competition.
It’s an encounter where the opponents challenge each other’s culture and identity while emotions run high in their fight for victory.
Florida A&M head men’s basketball coach Charlie Ward knows about a good rivalry.
Ward’s former NBA team, the New York Knicks, are amidst a best-of-seven series versus the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Knicks drafted the former point guard out of Florida State University with the 1994 NBA Draft’s 26th overall. Ward played for 10 out of his 11 NBA seasons for the Knicks.
The Pacers lead the Knicks 2-1 with a trip to the NBA Finals on the line. In the most recent matchup, the New York erased a 20-point deficit to beat Indiana 106-100 in Game 3 on Sunday, May 25 at the Pacers’ Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
It’s the Knicks and Pacers’ second consecutive season meeting in the playoffs, as Indiana eliminated New York from the Eastern Conference Semifinals last year.
“I’m hoping the Knicks will be on top when it’s all said and done,” Ward told the Tallahassee Democrat about the ongoing playoff series. “It was already cooking with grease. You’re just turning the heat up to where it’s popping out the pot.”
The Knicks and Pacers faced each other in six NBA Playoffs between 1993 and 2000, with the foes winning three apiece.
Ward was part of four matchups in 1995, 1998, 1999, and 2000.
“Throughout the years, we knew it was just going to be quality basketball, and every game was going to be knockdown, drag-out because of the players they had and vice versa,” Ward said. “You knew what they would bring, and they knew what we would bring. So, just fun competition.”
During those six playoff meetings, the Knicks and Pacers had Naismith Basketball Hall of Famers headlining their teams. Patrick Ewing starred for New York, and Reggie Miller was Indiana’s cornerstone.
Pacers star Miller and die-hard Knicks fan and award-winning film producer Spike Lee often bantered with each other during the games, which assisted the rivalry’s mainstream attention.
One of the most iconic Knicks versus Pacers moments was when Indiana’s Miller scored eight points in nine seconds to complete the comeback and beat New York 107-105 in Game 1 of the 1994-1995 season’s Eastern Conference Semifinals.
After the scoring outburst, Miller made his immortalized “choke” gesture toward Lee, signifying the Knicks letting the game slip away. The Pacers beat the Knicks in seven games before falling to the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals.
That was Ward’s rookie year.
“Reggie Miller was the hated one in New York after what he did against us with those eight points in nine seconds,” Ward reflected. “All of that just boiled over each year. Just knowing what was at stake would always provide that animosity.”
Ward believes the Knicks-Pacers rivalry ranks with hardwood classics like the Los Angeles Lakers versus the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers versus the Celtics.
The FAMU basketball coach thinks of happy memories, such as when Ward, at 6-foot-2, blocked Pacers’ 7-foot-4 center Rik Smits’ shot in the 2000 Eastern Conference Finals. Ward also recalls heartbreak, like when Ewing missed the potential game-tying finger roll that led to the Pacers’ Game 7 victory over the Knicks to advance to the 1994-1995 Eastern Conference Finals.
“I would put the Knicks versus Pacers up there with all those rivalries,” Ward said. “From my memory, being in those battles, they were top of mind.”
FAMU basketball coach Charlie Ward attended the New York Knicks-Indiana Pacers 2025 playoff series
Ward has watched this year’s Knicks versus Pacers playoff series up close.
The FAMU coach traveled to New York for Game 1, which was played on Wednesday, May 21.
Ward said Madison Square Garden’s environment was “electric.”
“Enjoyed getting a chance to see some of my former teammates, hear some of those stories, and meet many celebrities,” Ward said. “It was a fun experience.”
Attending Game 1 means that Ward witnessed an NBA Playoffs instant classic.
As time expired, Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton hit a miraculous mid-range jump shot that bounced into the air off the back of the rim and swished through the basketball for Indiana to force overtime against New York. After the shot, Haliburton made Miller’s “choke” gesture towards the New York crowd.
The Pacers ultimately outlasted the Knicks 138-135, rallying from down 17 points.
“When it went up in the air, I knew that it was going to go in,” Ward said of Haliburton’s shot. “I was hoping it would go somewhere else, but I’ve seen those bounces happen.”
FAMU basketball coach Charlie Ward hoping current era New York Knicks can return to NBA Finals
The Knicks have had great point guards like Walt Frazier, Mark Jackson, and Stephon Marbury.
This season, Jalen Brunson, an NBA second-teamer, is making his case to join the list right now. Brunson is averaging 29.9 points per game, 3.5 rebounds, and 7.3 assists during this year’s playoff run.
Ward played alongside Brunson’s father, Rick, during the 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 seasons. Rick Brunson is now an assistant coach for the Knicks.
“He’s a winner,” Ward said of Jalen Brunson, a two-time All-NBA selection and NBA All-Star. “He does all the things that you need to win basketball games. When it’s all said and done, you need a guy like him because he will make plays for himself and others. He attracts double teams and gets it to the right person.”
The Knicks and Pacers will meet for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals on Tuesday, May 27, at 8 p.m. inside the Gainbridge Fieldhouse. TNT and TruTV will broadcast the game.
The winner of the Knicks-Pacers series will meet the Western Conference’s Oklahoma City Thunder or Minnesota Timberwolves in the NBA Finals, which starts on Thursday, June 5. New York hasn’t been to the Finals since 1999, while the Pacers last appeared in 2000.
“The longer it goes, it’s going to come down to whose teammates make the most plays offensively, and then the team that gets the most stops defensively,” Ward analyzed the Knicks-Pacers series. “And guys got to stay healthy.”
Gerald Thomas, III is a multi-time award-winning journalist for his coverage of the Florida A&M Rattlers at the Tallahassee Democrat.
Follow his award-winning coverage on RattlerNews.com and contact him via email at GDThomas@Tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee.