Pacers Face Tyrese Haliburton Conundrum With Backs Against Wall originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
By almost every measure, Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton experienced a playoff meltdown.
He missed every field-goal attempt. He lacked aggressiveness. He struggled with running the offense and holding onto the ball.
Haliburton became the primary reason why the Pacers labored through a 120-109 road loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. He posted only four points and did not score until midway through the third quarter on a pair of free throws. He missed all six of his shots from the field, including four from 3-point range. He offset his six assists with three turnovers, including two in the final six minutes of the game.
“I was not great tonight by any means,” Haliburton told reporters afterward.
In normal circumstances, Haliburton would have deserved the ensuing scorched commentary about his playoff shortcomings, his standing among NBA stars and his trajectory. The Thunder have a 3-2 series lead with a chance to clinch the NBA championship in Game 6 on Thursday in Indiana mostly because of Haliburton’s shortcomings. In this case, though, consider this important caveat.
“He’s not 100%,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle told reporters. “It’s pretty clear.”
Yes, it is.
With 6:54 left in the first quarter, Haliburton fell while driving to the basket after twisting his left foot, dribbling right and landing awkwardly on his right foot. Not only did OKC take advantage of Haliburton’s fall and subsequent turnover. That marked the beginning of the Thunder taking advantage of an ineffective Haliburton through the rest of Game 5.
Haliburton sat for the final 1:56 of the first quarter. He returned from the locker room with a wrap around his lower right leg before checking in with 8:27 left in the second quarter. During the entire first half, Haliburton remained scoreless for the first time in 36 postseason games.
Carlisle conceded that he and his coaching staff “were concerned at halftime” about how to manage Haliburton in the second half. ESPN reported that Haliburton nursed right calf tightness, and he said afterward that he felt pain in a similar area to where he suffered a right leg injury in Game 2. Before the training staff could intervene, however, Carlisle reported that Haliburton “insisted on playing” for obvious reasons.
“It’s the NBA Finals,” Haliburton told reporters. “It’s the Finals, man. I worked my whole life to be here, and I wanted to be out there and compete and help my teammates in any way I can.”
The only problem: Haliburton didn’t really help his teammates any way he could.
Haliburton didn’t score until hitting a pair of free throws midway through the third quarter. Then, midway through the fourth quarter, Haliburton threw a poor pass into traffic, which resulted in Jalen Williams finishing in transition for a 105-97 cushion. Shortly thereafter, Haliburton committed another turnover.
Carlisle contended that Haliburton “made a lot of good things happen in the second half.” Not really. Haliburton lacked burst. He looked hobbled. He seemed overwhelmed with the Thunder’s swarming defense. Pascal Siakam (28 points) and T.J. McConnell (18 points) proved much more effective, but it would not have been realistic just to rely on them. Siakam produces as an off-ball forward. McConnell plays with energy, but Carlisle observed that he looked “very tired” by crunch time. It doesn’t help that the Thunder boasts plenty of depth with Williams (40 points), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (31), Aaron Wiggins (14) and Cason Wallace (11).
That only put Haliburton in a lose-lose situation. By playing, Haliburton showed his limitations and potentially could have risked further injury. If he sat, Haliburton would have left teammates, coaches, fans and media all wondering why he would not at least try to compete in a high-stakes Finals game.
The trickier part: it’s not clear if Haliburton simply managed pain tolerance or possible structural damage. Therefore, it’s not fair to pin Haliburton’s latest struggles as another example of his postseason inconsistency. It’s also not fair to compare Haliburton’s shrinking performance to how Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant thrived in the postseason through countless ailments.
“Not many guys are going to sit even if they’re a little banged up,” Carlisle told reporters. “If you’re injured, that’s a different story. We’ll evaluate everything with Tyrese, and see how he wakes up tomorrow.”
Then, the Pacers may have more clarity on the severity of Haliburton’s injury and what treatment he may need. Nonetheless, Carlisle predicted, “I don’t think he’s going to miss the next game.”
After all, Haliburton will have two days to rest and recover before Game 6 on Thursday (8:30 p.m. ET on ABC). Haliburton will face what Carlisle called “a lifetime opportunity” with trying to salvage the Pacers’ championship fortunes before a supportive home crowd
“If you lose, the season is over. So our backs are against the wall,” Haliburton told reporters. “We take pride in playing at home in front of our fans. Our fans are amazing. We know they’re going to come out with a ton of energy in Game 6. We’ll have to be able to respond and be better.”
For better or for worse, that hinges on two things.
How well can Haliburton’s right leg recover? How well can he play through any lingering pain? As shown in a sluggish Game 5 loss, however, Haliburton could not come through in the clutch as he did when he made four winning shots in this year’s playoffs. No longer can the Pacers rally with assurances that they can lean on their closer.
Mark Medina is an NBA contributor for Athlon Sports. Follow him on X, Blue Sky, Instagram, Facebook and Threads.
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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 17, 2025, where it first appeared.