Most NBA fans did not predict a Finals run for the Indiana Pacers, but they are the last team alive in the East ahead of the Finals this week. For Lakers superstar LeBron James, his foresight told him months ago that the Pacers were a really good team, and he saw the first signs of greatness through Tyrese Haliburton in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
“Hali is one of them ones,” said James. “The success is not happening because it came out of the blue. It’s happening because of Hali and that team, they’re built perfectly for that group.”
Haliburton is a notorious trash talker, and his theatrics were on full display during the Pacers’ recent series win over the New York Knicks. As his teammate in the Olympics this summer, LeBron saw that side of Haliburton, and he knows not to take it for granted.
“We would play a free-throw game after practice,” said James. “It would be me, him, Ant, and AD. We would just try to talk sh*t to one another, get somebody off their line.”
After leading the Pacers to the East Finals last year, Tyrese Haliburton got an invitation to join Team USA in Paris. While his playtime was limited in the tournament, he still made a strong impression on his star teammates despite relatively low averages of 2.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.3 steals, and 14.8 minutes per game.
When he wasn’t recruiting for the Pacers, Hali was trash-talking everyone on the court, including LeBron James and Anthony Edwards. Behind the scenes, he set the tone for Team USA and helped bring out the best in all of his teammates. In his limited role, Haliburton made the biggest impact possible, truly making the most of his situation.
Whatever Haliburton learned in that ordeal has helped him elevate his game to another level. In 73 games in the regular season, Haliburton averaged 18.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 9.2 assists per game on 47.3% shooting. He led Indiana to the fourth seed in the East and now has them in the Finals, just four wins away from a championship. In the playoffs so far, Haliburton is averaging 18.8 points, 9.8 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game on 47.3% shooting.
Against the Thunder in the Finals, the Pacers will face their biggest challenge yet this season, and most experts predict they will not survive. With the odds stacked against them, Indiana will need almost perfect execution to pull off the upset, but they are showing few signs of concern.
Just like they have all season, the Pacers will trust in each other and use teamwork to overcome their obstacles. With Haliburton leading the way, Indiana already has someone who can set up plays for the others, but they’ll need the supporting players to step up and deliver in their roles for the team to have any chance of winning.
In LeBron’s eyes, Tyrese Haliburton has already passed his test, and he believes he is capable of delivering a historic performance in this series. Win or lose, you know Hali is going to be ready and he’s going to be talking smack every step of the way.
