Ben Stiller is a New York Knicks superfan who surely had a lot to say as the Knicks prepared to defeat the San Antonio Spurs in Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday night.
However, we will never know exactly what Stiller meant. You can thank ESPN’s pregame coverage for that.
ESPN had the actor on the court with retired players Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith, current Golden State Warrior Draymond Green, and host Ernie Johnson as part of the ESPN show. Inside the NBA.
Just before the Knicks finally rallied from a 29-point deficit and stay away on Polymarket odds to win it all, Stiller had the opportunity to promote his favorite team. No doubt viewers were eager to hear Stiller’s thoughts.
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Johnson briefly introduced Stiller before allowing the actor his turn under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden. What followed was something Stiller could have edited from one of his films and then filmed another take. But not Wednesday night on live television.
Stiller’s ESPN microphone was muted. This prompted the ever-outspoken Barkley to shout “Good job, team!”
Ben Stiller gets a microphone muted to begin his appearance on ‘Inside the NBA’ on ESPN. pic.twitter.com/ACDI32Udpg
– Horrible advertisement (@awfulannunciando) June 10, 2026
It’s safe to say that Stiller won’t be cherry-picking any key points from the ESPN production team for his next film.
Johnson quickly turned and asked Green to hand his working microphone to Stiller in an effort to salvage the interview. Stiller adapted quickly, citing the “help of Draymond Green.”
Will the New York Knicks win the 2026 NBA Finals?
All was not lost and the interview continued after the awkward ESPN moment.
It was certainly embarrassing, but far from the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened on the MSG court. That honor belonged to the visiting Spurs, who made one costly mistake after another in the historic collapse.
After the loss, the Knicks now have a 79% chance of winning the NBA Finals. Polymarket. Their first chance to shut down the Spurs and capture the title comes Saturday night in San Antonio. Game 5 is scheduled to begin at 8:30 p.m. ET.
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