Tyrese Haliburton produced another fascinating performance in the NBA playoffs. This time I defeated the New York Knicks.
Entering Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the New York Knicks, Tyrees Halliburton embraced the role of the villain.
Halliburton was hyped, scoring 31 points in a spectacular overtime victory for the Indiana Pacers, earning a 138-135 victory.
He informed them of it, and made his heroic and the New York Knicks misery home with a memorable Reggie Miller “Chalk” celebration.
Halliburton averages 18.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 9.5 assists per game in the playoffs.
And despite the claims that Stephen A. Smith is not a superstar, there are still quite a few teams left with regrets at the age of 25.
Tyreese Halliburton was drafted in 2020, with the 12th overall selection being held, with the Sacramento Kings winning the pick.
They caused him controversy with the Domantas Sabonis package, a deal that worked well for the best for the Indiana Pacers.
The King is not the only team who regrets Halliburton. The Golden State Warriors also saw his clear potential.
In 2023, former Warriors general manager Bob Myers told ESPN (via NBC) that Halliburton had made a very strong impression in his pre-draft training.
Myers explained: “Let’s talk about that. That workout was a few miles from here in Vegas myself, Steve Kerr and Joe Lacob.
“He did what he did. He made a lot of shots and we looked at each other and said, ‘He might be pretty good.’ It’s like different kinds of shots, set shots, but he made them all. ”
Myers says he was really impressed that Halliburton met when he spoke to them after training.
“What bothers me more than anything was that he trained well (but) when we met him I should have known how he was as a person and as a leader.
“You meet people, so you talk to them. But that conversation left Mark for how smart he is and how confident he is (how confident he is. It’s not fake, it’s not rog arrog, it’s confidence.”
The Golden State Warriors held the second pick in the 2020 NBA Draft and were more confident with other outlooks.
They chose James Wiseman as number two. This was a costly mistake as players were traded earlier this year and were cut by the Pacers.
The Warriors also handed over Lamelo Ball and Dennis Avdija and others, but were later claimed they hadn’t traded up for Anthony Edwards.
And as Tyrese Halliburton moves from strength to strength, the Warriors were eliminated in the final round, amid the lack of depth behind Steph Curry.