The 2025-26 season was a dream for the New York Knicks, from the NBA Cup to the NBA Finals. This season is shaping up differently.

The defending Cup champions fell to 0-2 in group play on Friday with a 106-104 loss to the Indiana Pacers, who are still playing without Tyrese Haliburton due to a left hamstring strain. That puts New York in the bottom of the East Group B standings and all but eliminates them from the in-season tournament.

No team with two losses in group play has reached the knockout rounds in the NBA Cup since its introduction in 2023.

Beyond the NBA Cup, the loss dropped the Knicks to 6-6 in the regular season, continuing a slow start for a team that brought back nearly every contributor from last year’s champion.

The game was nearly another epic comeback for the Knicks, who were down by 14 late in the third quarter but had the game tied early in the fourth. The Pacers responded with a 13-2 run to reassert control and held off one last Knicks push in the final minute.

New York cut an eight-point lead to two in the final two minutes and had a chance to steal the win when an inbounds pass went wrong for the Pacers (not helped by a missed foul call by the refs), but Karl-Anthony Towns’ would-be game-tying shot clanked away.

Every Pacers starter scored in double figures, with Pascal Siakam leading the team with 19 points. That plus 29 bench points was enough to counter a 33-point, 11-assist night by Jalen Brunson.

Dunk of the Night

NBA Cup Night 3 scoreboard

NBA Cup Standings

East Group A

• Orlando Magic (2-0, +15)

• Detroit Pistons (1-0, +16)

• Toronto Raptors (1-1, +7)

• Brooklyn Nets (0-1, -16)

• Milwaukee Bucks (0-2, -22)

East Group B

• Cleveland Cavaliers (1-0, +24)

• Miami Heat (1-0, +20)

• Philadelphia 76ers (1-1, -19)

• Indiana Pacers (1-1, -18)

• New York Knicks (0-2, -7)

East Group C

• Boston Celtics (2-0, +53)

• Atlanta Hawks (1-0, +7)

• Washington Wizards (1-1, +9)

• Chicago Bulls (0-1, -14)

• Charlotte Hornets (0-2, -55)

West Group A

• Dallas Mavericks (2-0, +17)

• Denver Nuggets (1-0, +7)

• Houston Rockets (0-1, -5)

• Phoenix Suns (0-1, -7)

• Utah Jazz (0-1, -12)

West Group B

• Minnesota Timberwolves (2-0, +32)

• Oklahoma City Thunder (1-0, +31)

• New Orleans Pelicans (0-1, -6)

• Los Angeles Clippers (0-1, -26)

• Memphis Grizzlies (0-1, -31)

West Group C

• Golden State Warriors (1-0, +17)

• San Antonio Spurs (1-0, +15)

• Los Angeles Lakers (1-1, -11)

• Portland Trail Blazers (0-1, -6)

• Sacramento Kings (0-1, -15)