"We were happy to be there and cheer our team" - Ben Stiller slams Pat McAfee for 'weird' comments at Knicks game

Ben Stiller is as dedicated a New York Knicks fan as you'll find, regularly supporting his team in person, especially when the stakes are the highest. On May 27, Stiller traveled to Indiana to sit courtside at the highly anticipated fourth game of the Knicks-Pacers Eastern Conference Finals, where fellow Knicks supporters Timothée Chalamet and Spike Lee were also in attendance.

Before starting the fourth quarter of a closely contested game, a microphone was handed to Pat McAfee to energize the crowd. McAfee, a former NFL punter with the Indianapolis Colts, a media superstar, and a current Indiana resident, seized the unexpected opportunity and ran with it, delivering an emphatic statement about what was needed from the team. Stiller was candid about his initial response to McAfee's actions at a game his Knicks would ultimately lose.

“Yes. Weird. We were happy to be there and cheer our team and other than that Indy fans were awesome."

Ben Stiller's counter with Pat McAfee during the NBA Conference Finals

According to Pat McAfee, he didn't expect a microphone to be brought to him during the game, but also couldn't pass up the opportunity to rile up the Pacer faithful. In his words, he had to bring the juice." The exact moment played out as follows when McAfee addressed the crowd.

"Spike Lee is here. Ben Stiller is here. Timothée Chalamet is here.”

This led the fans to boo after each name before McAfee concluded with,

“Let’s send these sons of b------ back to New York!"

After his initial response to the situation, Stiller then took to X to clarify his stance on the incident even further,

“It’s ok. He must be playing around - if it’s an actual point of view it seems a little anachronistic or cliche? Like we are “ big city celebs” and we shouldn’t be there in the heartland?Again, everyone we met was awesome and incredibly cool.”

McAfee also addressed the situation on his daily sports show, which has single-handedly reshaped the sports media landscape. He claims it was all in good fun, he has tremendous respect for the Knicks faithful who travel to support their squad (naming Lee, Stiller, and Chalamet specifically), and that he actually said,

“Let’s send these sons of b------ back to New York with their heads ringing!”

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This message appears less aggressive and aligns more closely with his well-documented penchant for histrionics, particularly when under the spotlight.

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