IF THUNDER MASH THE PACERS, MAYBE MCAFEE VS. MELLENCAMP WILL LAST LONGER
Any chance of extending the NBA Finals ended with a sixth game against the Knicks, which means a courtside blowhard brouhaha could bring more attention to a small-market series
They will run into each other, if not stumble and bumble. The NBA Finals will feature much more, thankfully, than the least conspicuous championship round in years. Let the Thunder win in five games for Oklahoma City and all panhandled states. Let the Pacers make inroads at Gainbridge Fieldhouse for a human collision better than basketball.
Pat McAfee vs. John Mellencamp.
Unless the ESPN goober has a change of gumption — he can pick on the Flaming Lips, pride of OKC — McAfee might want a piece of the rocker who badmouthed him. Much as we’d savor Shai Gilgeous-Alexander against Tyrese Haliburton, the Pacers botched their shot when the Knicks forced a sixth game of the Eastern Conference finals. Hey, at least Games 3 and 4 are in Indianapolis, where life always is about “Pink Houses” and “Jack and Diane.” But sometimes, Mellencamp blasts a rowdy “Rain on the Scarecrow” with a mean guitar.
He did so last week, after watching McAfee take the arena microphone and prompt local fans to act like halfwits. He addressed New York’s celebrity crowd — Timothee Chalamet, Ben Stiller and Spike Lee — and suggested the Hoosier rats “send these sons of bitches back to New York with their ears ringing.”
“Hoosier Hospitality … I was embarrassed when somebody, under whose direction I don’t know, called out some of the people who’d made the trip from New York to support their team — and in turn, support our team,” Mellencamp wrote online. “The audience booed these people. I’d say that was not Hoosier Hospitality. One could only say it’s poor, poor sportsmanship. I was not proud to be a Hoosier, and I’ve lived here my entire life. On behalf of most Hoosiers, I would like to apologize for our poor behavior. I’m sure the Pacers had nothing to do with this smackdown.”
Best known for supporting farmers against foreclosures, Mellencamp chose to take down a sports commentator. This was Old Indiana versus New Indiana. McAfee — who spent his career as a Colts punter in a daze reminding us of wild-haired John Cougar, Mellencamp’s original stage name — wanted no part of a 73-year-old singer trashing him.
“When the Knicks are playing in Gainbridge, I believe there’s gonna be some boos, there might be some negative things said towards the other team. This is kind of how sports work,” McAfee said mockingly. “What a moment for ‘John Coug’ yesterday. John: I can’t tell you how bad everything you did here was. Everything. The graphic, the quote, the timing — you’re two days late, John … It doesn’t even say my name.
“You thought you were gonna bury me? I don’t think so, John! “Hey Coug: Suck it, buddy. Hope I get the chance to see you real soon, I think we’re probably gonna be at the same place pretty soon. I don’t want any of your bulls--t, I don’t like you.”
If McAfee punches “Coug,” it might be enough for ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro to finally release him. For those who want him off the direct-to-consumer service in a few months, why not an in-state breakdown? All he does is stupid stuff that dumbs down the network. The future of ESPN is Stephen A. Smith and Pat McAfee. Maybe Mellencamp is participating in a bigger scam. Ruin his career.
All of which makes Pitaro happier than a Thunder-Pacers matchup. These are two small markets that have minimized all the hyped stars: Stephen Curry, LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Kevin Durant. If nothing else, it would have been fun watching the NBA’s new wave in prime territory. But the Thunder, who will have a week off before Game 1, rank as one of the biggest gambling favorites in the last 20 years. This is Shai’s league, and not the league of Anthony Edwards or Giannis Antetokounmpo or Jayson Tatum. Watch SGA take over and draw comparisons to an early Curry, who won his first title in Golden State 10 years ago. Mark Daigneault, at 40, is making everyone forget the other coaches. He and executive vice president Sam Presti are in control of a potential dynasty in the making.
Not that America cares. Ratings will be low. People will need time, as they needed with Curry and the Warriors during four titles. Try to appreciate something new in rodeo country. “I don’t know what everybody else’s NBA coaching existence is like, but I operate at 100 percent capacity,” Daigneault said. “There’s nothing constraining me from coaching my best. There’s nothing constraining our coaching staff from coaching our best. There’s nothing constraining our chefs from doing their jobs. I mean, everybody in our locker room is grateful and humble, respectful, kind, professional, and it allows everybody to operate at full capacity. And we don’t take that for granted. I don’t take that for granted.”
Why is it happening in the 42nd-largest media market? “I think it’s where they come from,” Daigneault continued. “It’s their families. It’s their circles. As impressive as they are, when you look at their homes, where they come from, who’s around them, who’s talking to them now, who was talking to them when they were 10 years old, it all fits together. It makes sense. They’re great people first. That’s why. That’s why it’s so easy to coach this team. These guys are uncommon. They do everything right. Thy’re professional. They’re high character.”
Whoa. Remember when Presti traded Paul George to the Clippers — George should replace Larry O’Brien as the trophy name, having played for the Thunder and Pacers? In the deal, he acquired Gilgeous-Alexander, who realized Presti had created a Finals vision with Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden and noticed a new path.
“Sam didn’t have a vision for me,” SGA said. “He just traded for me. He had a few conversations where I realized he knows what he’s doing very quickly, and then I just trusted him. Control what I can control. And as you guys can see, he’s done a great job of doing his job to check things around here very quickly. Yeah, I think it just speaks to the tone that he’s set across the organization.”
If Presti wins a title, is he the Red Auerbach of the 21st century, with two Finals teams in 13 years after a lengthy reset? Ever see players so young speak with such certainty? Durant, who forced his way out of OKC and won two titles in Golden State, is effusive about the Thunder. “This 2025 Thunder team, they are historically great,” he wrote online. “Great shooting all across the board, efficient go to scorer in deuce, size and athleticism all across the board, versatility, shooting big and bruiser big, great coaching. Just a flat out perfectly crafted unit. They are puttin together great film to learn from.”
The Pacers will need Haliburton to play well each game. Against New York, he did not. They don’t have the defensive mastery of the Thunder. SGA and Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren are at their best on both ends. Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, who won a title with Dallas in 2011, knows an Eastern Conference crown is no reason to chirp.
“This is no time to be popping champagne,” he said. “When you get to this point of the season, it’s two teams and it’s one goal. So it becomes an all-or-nothing thing and we understand the magnitude of it.”
The first two games are in OKC. McAfee will make fun of cowboys, the Flaming Lips and the Sooner Schooner. But then comes Game 3. Recently, Mellencamp told fans to, “Shut the f— up, or I’ll end this show.”
Have them meet at courtside, then. Maybe ESPN will air the fray. It might last longer than the Finals.
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Jay Mariotti, called “without question the most impacting Chicago sportswriter of the past quarter-century,’’ writes general sports columns for Substack while appearing on some of the 1,678,498 podcasts and shows in production today. He is an accomplished columnist, TV panelist and talk/podcast host. Living in Los Angeles, he gravitated by osmosis to film projects.