How a Fart Helped the Knicks Beat the Pacers in a Must-Win Playoff Game

The New York Knicks enter Friday night’s game against the Indiana Pacers one win away from the Eastern Conference Finals. They might not even be in this position, though, without a fart.

On Tuesday, ahead of a crucial Game 5 between the Knicks and Pacers with the series tied at two apiece, the Knicks were in their locker room preparing to play. Tensions were understandably high, as the winner of Game 5 of a series tied at two has gone on to win the series 82 percent of the time in NBA postseason history.

As the players got set for the game, though, something unusual happened.

A loud noise came from the buttocks of one of the players, bringing an incredible silence to the locker room. The fart was described as “epic” by Fred Katz, the New York Knicks beat writer for The Athletic, who was at the scene of the crime. Katz gave a first-hand account of the situation in an interview on the Dan Le Batard Show.

“For length and for volume, is exactly why (it was epic),” Katz said of the fart. “It actually didn’t get a reaction audibly at all. It got pure silence and a look over to that one player. And that one player looked around as if he was being inconspicuous, and said with a completely straight face, ‘Something’s up with the pipes in here.'”

Katz elected not to name the player, but said his one-liner led to a massive laugh in the locker room, loosening the players up ahead of the game. Fortunately, it didn’t bring along any smell.

“It was purely audio,” Katz said. “As a matter of fact, when it happened, it strung along for I would say a lot longer than one might expect for a fart of that volume and in that context.”

“It was very loud… it was loud but proud.”

No one has taken responsibility for the fart heard ’round the locker room, but if the Knicks continue to win this postseason, it could go down as one of the most important farts in sports history.

The Knicks ended up blowing out the Pacers in Game 5, 121-91, behind a 44-point performance by point guard Jalen Brunson. They’ve now set up a potential clinch game on Friday at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse by putting their foot on the gas pedal in Indianapolis.

The Knicks entered Game 5 having lost the last two games of the series, including a 121-89 loss. Momentum was all on the Pacers’ side. One fart later, the Knicks are in prime position to reach the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2000.