With only 6 points on his clock after three quarters, Tyrese Haliburton had not yet weighed its full weight against the Clippers. He waited until the last act to show his best face, with 18 points. Above all, the Indiana point guard scored 11 points in the last three minutes to dominate the Los Angeles team.
“His fourth quarter was monstrous”, commented Rick Carlisle for the Indy Star. “18 points. He did everything possible and imaginable. It was wonderful to watch. »
It was also a confirmation, because lately, the former Kings is particularly decisive, after missing two sequences in a row. Against the Cavaliers and then the Knicks (December 16 and 18), Tyrese Haliburton had disappointed with two small points scored (no shot scored) in the last quarter in these two defeats.
Since then, he has chained the beautiful performances. Against Boston on December 21, he scored or passed on his team’s last nine points to secure Indiana’s victory. Two days later, he scored the basket 3-pts from winning against the Heat. Finally, before this game against the Clippers, on the 27th, he had scored 12 points in the last quarter to dismiss the Hawks.
“Very often in the NBA, the last quarter is about giving the ball to a player and letting him do the actions,” explains Tyrese Haliburton. “I think the staff and my teammates were very good after the game against New York to clarify what we wanted to do at the end of the game. And how I could do better, because I didn’t like the way I finished matches. I missed shots and I didn’t have control like in the first quarter. »
“Players like him, like Luka Doncic or Reggie Miller feel when it’s their time”
This is precisely what Rick Carlisle expected of his player in these decisive moments: that he take control of operations and play on his own. Which is not always easy when you have the pass in your blood.
“Let me do our deeds and command more,” specifies the best passer in the league on the instructions of his coach. “We saw it a few times, I had isolation sequences, where I asked the guys to give me space. The question of balance is constant. There is no perfect solution, I asked the question to a lot of people and no one has the answer. It’s a question of feelings, according to the needs of the team. »
Since these two consecutive defeats in mid-December, Tyrese Haliburton shines (27.3 points at 55% success in shooting, 50% at 3-pts, and 7.8 assists on average) and the Pacers also with five wins in six games.
“He is a basketball scholar”, says his coach. “Players like him, like Luka Doncic or Reggie Miller feel when it’s their time. It’s not necessarily him every time, sometimes he will make a pass that will lead to a basket. His will to win is spectacular for a young player. It’s amazing to see him grow with each game. »
| Tyrese Haliburton | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2020-21 | BAG | 58 | 30 | 47.2 | 40.9 | 85.7 | 0.7 | 2.3 | 3.0 | 5.3 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 13.0 |
| 2021-22 * | All Teams | 77 | 35 | 47.3 | 41.4 | 84.2 | 0.8 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 8.2 | 1.6 | 1.7 | 2.6 | 0.6 | 15.3 |
| 2021-22 * | BAG | 51 | 34 | 45.7 | 41.3 | 83.7 | 0.8 | 3.1 | 3.9 | 7.4 | 1.4 | 1.7 | 2.3 | 0.7 | 14.3 |
| 2021-22 * | IND | 26 | 36 | 50.2 | 41.6 | 84.9 | 0.9 | 3.5 | 4.3 | 9.6 | 1.9 | 1.9 | 3.2 | 0.6 | 17.5 |
| 2022-23 | IND | 35 | 33 | 48.5 | 40.9 | 87.7 | 0.7 | 3.1 | 3.8 | 10.2 | 1.1 | 1.7 | 2.5 | 0.4 | 20.9 |
| Total | 170 | 33 | 47.6 | 41.1 | 85.6 | 0.7 | 2.9 | 3.6 | 7.6 | 1.4 | 1.6 | 2.2 | 0.5 | 15.7 | |
