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Star Pacers forward Pascal Siakam and Indianapolis Star columnist Gregg Doyel got into a heated back-and-forth exchange during a press conference following Indiana’s Game 5 loss to the

Knicks on Thursday. Doyel pressed Siakam repeatedly on why he thought the Knicks outplayed the Pacers — and why Indiana allowed that to happen — in their 111-94 loss at the Garden. “What’re

you talking about?” Siakam asked at the start of the awkward exchange. “They played harder than us. It’s OK. We played hard, but they played harder. What’s your point? I don’t get it.”

Siakam then proceeded to say “that happens in a game, though,” and later asked Doyel, “You good, bro?” He then proceeded to ask someone off-camera what the journalist’s name was, and a voice

responded that it was Doyel from the Indy Star. EXPLORE MORE This isn’t Doyel’s first time involved in a controversial press conference exchange, as he was suspended for two weeks by his

outlet — and banned from Fever games in 2024 — last year following a creepy comment directed toward then-Fever rookie Caitlin Clark. He made a heart gesture with his hands — something Clark

used to recognize her family during college basketball games at Iowa — and later said, “Start doing it to me and we’ll get along just fine.” ------------------------- FOLLOW THE POST’S

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------------------------- Doyel, in a follow-up column, apologized to Clark and admitted that he crossed the line. “After going through denial, and then anger — I’m on the wrong side of

this? Me??? — I now realize what I said and how I said it was wrong, wrong, wrong. I mean it was just wrong,” Doyel wrote at the time. “Caitlin Clark, I’m so sorry.” Siakam, who has torched

the Knicks at times this series, collected 15 points on 5-of-13 shooting, six rebounds and five assists Thursday. He poured in 39 points during Indiana’s Game 2 win, and then he followed

that up with another 30 in their Game 4 victory. The Pacers will have another chance to close out the Eastern Conference finals and advance to the NBA Finals on Saturday in Indiana, where

they split a pair of games with the Knicks earlier in the series.