Tyrese Haliburton. Credit :
Justin Ford/Getty
- Tyrese Haliburton suffered a game-ending injury to his Achilles during Game 7 of the NBA Finals
- “All of our hearts dropped,” Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle told reporters after the game
- The Pacers lost 103-91 to the Oklahoma City Thunder, missing their shot at their first NBA Championship
Tyrese Haliburton knew what had happened right away.
Just minutes into Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the 25-year-old Indiana Pacers guard drove to the basket, stepped awkwardly on his right leg and fell to the court in agony after injuring his Achilles.
The gravity of the game-ending, season-shifting situation was immediately clear as Haliburton slammed his fist on the court, shouting, “No! No!”
Tyrese Haliburton. Justin Ford/Getty
“All of our hearts dropped,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle told reporters after the game, which the Pacers lost 103-91 to the Oklahoma City Thunder, falling just shy of the team’s first NBA Championship.
Haliburton was the heart and soul of the Pacers, who made it to the NBA Playoffs on a modest 50-32 record as a No. 4 seed before switching to another gear in the postseason. Their star guard led the team in minutes played while adding 17.3 points and 8.6 assists per game, defying history throughout the playoffs with clutch shot after shot, including four different go-ahead or game-tying shots in the final five seconds throughout the playoffs, according to NBA.com.
The Oshkosh, Wisc., native’s playoff magic seemed improbable and almost destined for an NBA title after the Pacers forced a Game 7 despite Haliburton injuring his right calf in Game 5.
“If I can walk, I want to play,” Haliburton had said heading into Game 7, acknowledging the leg injury.
Then, moments into Game 7, Haliburton’s leg seemed to reach its breaking point when his right calf appeared to pop while he stepped towards the basket. Unable to walk, his teammates surrounded him on the floor and were visibly upset as he writhed on the ground.
With tears in his eyes, Pacers officials helped him off the court, taking the fate of the NBA title out of his hands.
The Pacers tried to hold on, cutting the game to within 10 points in the final minutes before NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder proved too much down the stretch and capped off their own first NBA title run with the Sunday night victory. ABC cameras showed Pacers players crying as they left the floor, greeted by Haliburton, who stood on crutches and hugged his teammates one by one after the game.
Tyrese Haliburton. Matthew Stockman/Getty
“We all are devastated for him,” Pacers guard T.J. McConnell said after the game, according to ESPN.
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“I was thinking about it the whole game,” Pacers forward Obi Toppin added.
Pacers veteran Pascal Siakam said afterwards that he was “proud” of what Haliburton accomplished, despite the tragic end to his and his teammates’ season.
“He did some incredible things, this whole playoff run and this year,” Siakam said. “I’m just super proud of him. Obviously, it hurts because we couldn’t get it done, and I wanted it so bad for him just because I know that he gave us everything — everything he had. It just hurts that he couldn’t see it through with us.”
