What Pacers coach Rick Carlisle says about Pat McAfee calling out celebrity Knicks fans in NBA playoffs

Rick Carlisle has declared he is Team McAfee.

The Indiana Pacers coach appeared on Pat McAfee’s show Monday and said he liked McAfee’s hype speech early in the fourth quarter of Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the New York Knicks.

McAfee went full WWE during that timeout, name checking a few celebrity Knicks fans in the Gainbridge Fieldhouse crowd and throwing in a curse. That drew a rebuke from Indiana rock ‘n’ roll icon John Mellencamp, who also was in the crowd. A small online kerfuffle ensued.

“We appreciate you, Pat,” Carlisle said Monday. “We appreciate you getting us going when you’re sitting courtside. it’s awesome. I don’t care what other people think. It’s good.”

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At the end of McAfee’s speech, Carlisle walked back toward the Pacers bench and McAfee playfully punched his shoulder. Carlisle didn’t flinch, but jokingly said it affected him.

“I woke up with a bruise the next day,” he said. “I had forgotten what happened.”

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Pacers coach Rick Carlisle picks between Pat McAfee and John Mellencamp

What Pacers coach Rick Carlisle says about Pat McAfee calling out celebrity Knicks fans in NBA playoffs

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