The Indiana Pacers were not shy of change at the NBA trade deadline—resulting in Caris LeVert and Domantas Sabonis being moved to new teams. Tyrese Haliburton joins Chris Duarte as the franchise cornerstones of the future after being dealt by the Sacramento Kings.
Haliburton has wasted no time making a substantial impact. In his Pacers debut against the Cleveland Cavaliers, he finished with an impressive 23 points, three rebounds, and six assists. While the end result was a 120-113 loss, he served an integral role in Indiana scoring a staggering 47 points in the first quarter of the game—displaying intriguing potential for the unit as a whole.
“It’s amazing to see how well we were able to play together, how well we were able to click,” Pacers forward Oshae Brissett said. “That just goes to show everyone on the floor knew how to play the game of basketball the right way (even though) we had one practice, one shootaround…There was no selfishness, there was no agenda. That’s something we’ve got to carry on.”
The momentum dried up for the Pacers in the fourth quarter of their loss to the Cavs. They scored just 17 points on 7-of-22 FG (31.8%) and 2-of-11 3P (18.2%) within the period with Tyrese Haliburton struggling to fill the role of being the closer down the stretch. All of his shot attempts from the floor came from beyond the arc during this stretch and he had a pair of turnovers. Still, he displayed leadership qualities by taking ownership post-game.
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“I was really bad in the fourth,” Haliburton said. “I’ve got to be really better at just getting us into spots and just getting better. I think we’ll be better in the fourth quarter moving on. Obviously, we’re a young team, learning and growing, just learning each other.”
Despite the loss, Haliburton was quite impressive and made a statement in his Indiana Pacers debut. The 21-year-old guard made it be known that he can run a team at a high level. He followed up his debut performance by racking up 22 points, five rebounds, and 16 assists in a 129-120 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
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It’s been a challenge for the Pacers to achieve victories regardless of who has suited up. Right now, not having Myles Turner to anchor the defense has a strong negative impact on the team’s defense—placing an even greater burden on the offense to shoulder the load. With new players in the fold playing prominent roles, doing so is a challenge essentially on the fly. Still, Haliburton showed real promise, a real reason for optimism.
“We have a point guard of our future, and if you have been in this position for a long time, getting a point guard that is young, with upside and you feel like you can build around for the next 10 years, those don’t come around very often,” Pacers president Kevin Pritchard said about Haliburton, “Tyrese is that guy.”
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“We really feel like when we put the ball more in Tyrese’s hands that he can really blossom into something special at 21-years-old. For me, when you get those kind of guys, it’s like getting the (Peyton Mannings) and the Andrew Lucks.”
Tyrese Haliburton has done a lot of damage so far attacking in isolation situations after he drew a switch using a screen. While his shooting mechanics may not look usual, he can make bigs pay with his side step going to his right. He’s been able to convert from four-point range as a pull-up shooting threat, too. Managing to handle switching schemes is key for a guard to be a franchise cornerstone and Haliburton can get it done.
Using a traditional ball screen hasn’t often translated to Haliburton getting deep in the paint for a favorable finishing opportunity for himself. When he’s been most successful in pick-and-roll has been when the Indiana Pacers have deployed Buddy Hield in part of the screening action, whether as a ghost screener or in Spain pick-and-roll. Haliburton has been able to take advantage using high-quality passing reads.
When Haliburton has found success scoring using ball screens, he’s succeeded as a perimeter shot creator. Whether using a side step going to his right against a drop big where the on-ball defender goes over or countering a guard recovering against a ghost screener by creating a stepback jumper, there have been some big plays.
There have been some intriguing playmaking flashes from Tyrese Haliburton as he’s drawn the attention of the defense. He did the same with the Kings before the trade while De’Aaron Fox was sidelined. Now, he has an opportunity to capitalize on a more consistent basis as a focal point of the Pacers’ offense.
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Against the Timberwolves, he received a handoff that featured him engaging Jaden McDaniels with a behind-the-back dribble—stressing Malik Beasley to account for two Indiana Pacers players by himself until Anthony Edwards could recover. Haliburton drew Beasley with his eyes to commit to the wing and created a window to hit a cutter with a no-look pass.
While these aren’t plays that will make a highlight reel, Haliburton shows a real willingness to make the right basketball play when it comes to making the extra pass. His secondary playmaking skills tend to pop throughout games when he’s spacing the floor—making him an intriguing potential backcourt partner for another star guard that can apply a lot of rim pressure against the defense.
There’s been a lot to like about Haliburton’s impact as a passer on the open floor, too. He’s able to make some dynamic passes that he may make look easy, but are far from it. Two that stand out include the bounce pass he threw around Naz Reid against the Timberwolves when he had the defender in a compromising position. Another occurred when he launched a shovel pass to Duarte right on the money to set up a finish.
Based on what Haliburton has shown in the very early stage of his Pacers tenure, there’s a lot to like about what he could become as a player as he continues to develop. He’s already proven to be a highly efficient threat attacking off the catch. Now, he will have more of a chance to grow as an initiator being the one running high ball screens, attacking in isolation, or getting downhill using a DHO.
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Right now, the Indiana Pacers are ecstatic to have received an intriguing piece to build around in their backcourt. With already having Chris Duarte, the expectation is for them to form a strong duo together for many years to come. It’ll be fascinating to see how that plays out and what the ceiling looks like. With likely a talented prospect to add in the 2022 NBA Draft, things could get interesting in the Circle City soon.
