'Epic fart' helped Knicks prepare for Game 5 rout of Pacers

NBA

By Christian Arnold

Published
May 16, 2024, 8:07 p.m. ET

Teams find many ways to motivate themselves for big games.

A fart, however, might be a first for any professional sports team, but for the Knicks, it might have been the secret to their success in their Game 5 victory Tuesday night.

The Athletic’s Fred Katz revealed on the “Knicks Film School” Podcast An “epic fart” on Thursday helped loosen up the Knicks’ locker room ahead of the blowout victory that put them on the verge of winning the second-round series.

Although the exact player who let out the crucial scream has not been revealed, Katz appeared on “The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz” and provided more details about the event.

“When it happened, it lasted much longer than one would expect for a fart of this volume… that one player looked around and said with a completely straight face: ‘Something There’s something wrong with the pipes here.'” – @FredKatz joins us on WFAT as we continue our investigation into… pic.twitter.com/crKhcDN3ru

– Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (@LeBatardShow) May 16, 2024

Isaiah Hartenstein #55 greets New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson #11 after Brunson made a three-pointer during the third quarter.
Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

Katz told Le Batard that the fart made a lot of noise but had no odor, calling it “loud but proud.”

“It was purely audio. In fact, when it happened, it lasted much longer than one would expect for a fart of this volume and in this context,” Katz said.

Follow The Post’s coverage of the Knicks in the NBA playoffs

“In fact, there was no audible reaction at all. There was pure silence and a look at this player, and this player looked around as if he was inconspicuous and said with a completely straight face, “Something’s wrong with the pipes here,” and this caused a huge laugh. »

The Knicks now have a 3-2 lead over the Pacers. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

These new details prompted Le Batard to suggest that it was not so much the fart as the joke that helped ease the tension in the Knicks room after two consecutive losses in Indiana.

Regardless, the Knicks completely turned things around after the Game 4 loss at Indiana and cruised to a 30-point victory behind a 44-point effort from Jalen Brunson.

Game 6 will take place Friday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indiana.