When the Sacramento Kings picked up Tyrese Haliburton with the 12th overall pick in 2020, they had o clue just how good he would become. Sadly for the Kings, they never really got the chance to find out.
After a solid run in Sac-Town, which saw him play 109 games for the Kings, Hali was traded in a shocking deadline-day deal that sent him to the Indiana Pacers.
Tyrese has been pretty open about his feelings about being traded, but he has also been rather open about how glad he is that the trade went down.
Now, in the aftermath of his most recent game against his former team, Haliburton gave some more insight into his perspective on his time in Sacramento and explained that some of his comments about the culture may have been taken too far. He also took some time to show some love to one of his former teammates.
“They’re playing well,” Tyrese said after the 137-114 loss. “People blew up what I had to say about the culture (in Sacramento)… most players that were with me would say the same thing. That’s why there’s been coaching changes, GM changes. I don’t know why my words got blown up like that. But I can’t control that. Fox is here for the long haul. He’s playing at an All-Star level.”
Tyrese Haliburton: “People blew up what I had to say about the culture (in Sacramento)… most players that were with me would say the same thing… Fox is here for the long haul. He’s playing at an All-Star level.” pic.twitter.com/InxtABu5H8
— Cameron Salerno (@cameronsalerno1) December 1, 2022
To many fans and experts, the Kings still made a huge mistake by trading away Haliburton. Even with the success the Kings have enjoyed recently, Hali is looking like the franchise player that teams spend years tanking for
But one has to wonder if Tyrese and the Kings would have worked out at all. Judging from some of Hali’s previous statements, that particular franchise may not have been the best place for him to spend his career.
Haliburton’s Comments On The Kings’ Identity Exposed Potential Culture Problem In Sacramento
Tyrese has already downplayed his comments about the Kings’ culture, but it’s hard not to take some of his quotes as a slight against his former squad.
“My first two years, I played on a team and an organization with zero culture. Being honest,” Haliburton said, via Yahoo Sports. “The great part of coming to Indiana… I get to help build the culture here. Actually, a lot is expected of me. That’s my favorite part of this so far. It just seems like we have guys who really enjoy playing with each other,” he said.
So far, the Pacers/Kings deal is looking like a win-win for both sides. In Sacramento, De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis are lighting the West on fire with a level of play we haven’t seen from the team in decades.
Meanwhile, in Indiana, Tyrese Haliburton continues to do his thing in a situation that seems tailor-made for his success.
We sincerely appreciate and respect you as a reader of our site. It would help us a lot if you follow us on Google News because of the latest update.
Thanks for following us. We really appreciate your support.
