Tyrese Haliburton is set to make his long-awaited return to the court when the Indiana Pacers take on the New Orleans Pelicans in their season opener on Oct. 21. While Haliburton, who tragically tore his Achilles in the 2025 NBA Finals, is looking forward to playing an NBA game again, he is a bit upset that his return will be against the lowly Pelicans in New Orleans.
It’s not a national television game or a home game in Indiana, and Haliburton feels disrespected by the NBA. ESPN’s Chris “Mad Dog” Russo was stunned upon hearing this, but not in the way the two-time All-Star would have hoped. Russo went off on Haliburton on First Take on Wednesday for complaining.
“I mean, Haliburton, he’s not Jerry West,” Russo said. “… And he says he was shocked that my opener is not on national television. Are you serious? An Indiana team that won 15 games. You didn’t win a championship two years ago. You lost. No, you got hurt. They wouldn’t have won that game probably anyway.”
Haliburton had torn his Achilles in Game 7 of the Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The 26-year-old had scored nine points in the first quarter before suffering the injury, but Russo doesn’t think the Pacers would have won even if he had finished the game.
“The idea that somehow he thinks that the basketball nation with San Antonio and [Shai Gilgeous-Alexander] and LeBron [James] and Philly and the Knicks winning a championship, the new-look Celtics,” Russo said. “You mean to sit there and tell me you think you’re on that level that your opening game in the 2000 against the Pelicans should be on national television? I mean, come on.
“I mean, first off, who cares?” Russo continued. “Go out there and play 75 games. Secondly, you are not on that level of a player where you’re an iconic figure where the world pays attention to, and you’re a brand. You are not on that [level].
“You haven’t won a championship,” Russo added. “You haven’t played 30 years. Why, because you hit a ball that went 50 ft in the air and fell through the net against the Knicks a couple years ago… I was shocked that he thought his opening game off his Achilles should be nationally televised because people, pick a city, in Walla Walla can’t wait to see Haliburton again.”
That was brutal. It is true that Haliburton, for as good as he was in the playoff run, isn’t an iconic player like Hall of Famer Jerry West was. The Pacers, who went 19-63 in 2025-26, also aren’t as interesting as, say, the Philadelphia 76ers with LeBron James and Jaylen Brown, the defending champion New York Knicks, the runner-up San Antonio Spurs, and we could name some more teams as well.
The Pacers’ first game on national television will be against James and the 76ers on Oct. 28. They only have 11 in total, and the way to change that would be by bouncing back in some style.
With Haliburton back and healthy, the Pacers should be one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference. We’re talking about almost the same core that went 50-32 in 2024-25 and got to the Finals. They have actually upgraded at center with Ivica Zubac replacing Myles Turner.
Haliburton, who averaged 18.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, 9.2 assists, 1.4 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game in 2024-25, believes playing with Zubac will be transformational for him. It will be interesting to see how they work together.
If the Pacers do end up having a great season by making a deep playoff run, it won’t be just people from Walla Walla who want to see them and Haliburton on television in a year.
