Is Tyrese Haliburton's lingering injury hampering the Pacers?
OKLAHOMA CITY — Tyrese Haliburton has crafted a résumé and compiled a highlight reel like few other NBA players when it comes to late-game heroics and the ability to lead his Indiana Pacers team to breathtaking comebacks just in this 2025 postseason alone.
What the 25-year-old hasn’t done is assert himself at the start of games the way he so frequently has near the end. It’s a quirk in his game, a flaw in the eyes of some, that hinders Haliburton’s reputation as a star or so-called “face of the league.”
Most nights, it’s a topic best suited to a sports bar, a water cooler or a chat room. But on Monday, Haliburton’s low-profile start never had an uptick in Oklahoma City’s 120-109 Game 5 victory over Indiana to take a 3-2 lead in the 2025 NBA Finals. He was bothered by an apparent right leg injury that either contributed to or provided cover for a veritable no-show performance.
Haliburton’s fitness for Thursday’s Game 6 back in Indianapolis (8:30 p.m. ET, ABC) might dominate the coverage as the Pacers face elimination. But lurking just beneath the surface will be familiar questions and criticism about the point guard’s capacity to impose his will on games from tipoff, and captain a contender to a championship. It’s unfair, but All-NBA honorees are inevitably considered their teams’ leaders.
Haliburton’s ordeal on and off the floor Monday, and his inability all night to get traction, served as the turning point of Game 5. The Pacers never needed him more, and he could not give it.
“He’s not a hundred percent. It’s pretty clear,” Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said. “But I don’t think he’s going to miss the next game.”
The moment
Haliburton left the floor with 1:56 left in the first quarter and went back to the visitors’ locker room at Paycom Center. When he came back into the arena bowl early in the second quarter, he had his right calf wrapped and iced.
Haliburton returned to action at 8:27 of that period, with Indiana trailing 40-29. He appeared to be moving all right, though Carlisle wasn’t so sure. He subbed out Haliburton at 2:38, then sent him back at 1:01. By halftime, Haliburton had almost nothing to show for the 16:54 he had played: No points, one rebound, two assists, one turnover, 0-for-5 shooting, no free throws and a minus-16 rating, worse than the Pacers’ 59-45 deficit at the break.
The impact
None of the above would have doomed Indiana if Haliburton had perked up as the game played out. Saving his best for last has been a dramatic, exhilarating element of the Pacers’ playoff run through Milwaukee, Cleveland, New York and even in Game 1 against OKC.
But his second-half production in a team-high 17:16 was only modestly better than his first: 0-for-1 shooting, four free throws, six rebounds, four assists, two turnovers, two fouls and a plus-3.
Haliburton seemed to flit more on the edge of the action and continued to eat up the shot clock, veering side-to-side rather than attacking and penetrating. He was more of a witness than a major contributor when the Pacers in the second half cut OKC’s lead from 13 to nine, to six and ultimately to two at 95-93 on Pascal Siakam’s 3-pointer with 8:30 to play.
Haliburton didn’t show any real bursts, though he did jump off that right leg without any noticeable discomfort. He never got fully in gear, not with Lu Dort, OKC’s burly defender, attached at the hip.
The Pacers turned to backup point guard T.J. McConnell on Monday for the spark their starter couldn’t provide, which is part of the beauty of Indiana’s roster and chemistry. McConnell, Siakam and Obi Toppin put a little fear into the crowd at Paycom Center but the slender guard with a penchant for clutch shots never concerned the Thunder fans at all.
The Thunder create 23 turnovers, leading to 32 points in Game 5, a 23-point advantage over the Pacers.
What they’re saying
“I got him out early toward the end of the first half for two or three minutes because he just wasn’t moving well. He was tired, too. He got back in and seemed OK. Then halftime, we talked about it. … This is a lifetime opportunity. Not many guys are going to sit, even if they are a little banged up.” — Carlisle on Haliburton’s return
“He’s a fighter. He’s been our rock all year. He’s a big reason why we’re here. I don’t know exactly what’s wrong, but I know he’s fighting and he’s going to give us everything he’s got. We are 100% behind him and we support him.” — Siakam on Haliburton playing through his leg discomfort and ineffectiveness
“I mean, it’s the NBA Finals. It’s the Finals, man. I’ve worked my whole life to be here and I want to be out there to compete. Help my teammates any way I can. I was not great tonight by any means, but it’s not really a thought of mine to not play here. If I can walk, then I want to play.” — Haliburton
“We’ve just got to do a better job of getting spaced, getting downhill, I think that’s the most important thing, keeping pace in the game. We really got after it in the second half. Cut the lead down. They just made shot after shot. … [Twenty-three] turnovers against a team like this is a recipe for disaster.” — Haliburton on Indiana’s 23 turnovers, converted by OKC into 32 points
What’s next
The conversations about Haliburton that droned on for much of the postseason, including the first four games of the Finals, shift now to something more immediate and concrete. Rather than any “superstar vs. star vs. just another good player” debates, the focus will be on daily updates about his right leg.
After Game 2 in OKC, it was a reported soreness in his ankle that had Haliburton limping. Now it’s the tightness in that calf, a more worrisome injury for what it can potentially lead to: Achilles issues. Kevin Durant and Damian Lillard both suffered Achilles tears in playoff games after initially straining calf muscles. In the 2024 playoffs, Milwaukee shut down Giannis Antetokounmpo as a precaution against the dreadful aggravation.
Haliburton said Monday night that his Game 2 and Game 5 injuries are in “the same area.” But he sounds determined to play and, given the precautions NBA training staffs take these days, if he’s out there, neither he nor the Pacers will be nervous. About his leg, anyway.
“Going home, there’s not a better opportunity than to fight on your home floor,” Haliburton said. “It’s going to be a lot of fun playing a win-or-go-home game at our home.”
Keep one eye on Haliburton’s leg in Game 6 and the other on his reputation.
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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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