He only played four games in his new Pacers colors, but Tyrese Haliburton had a pretty good debut in Indiana. With 21 points, 11 assists and 4 rebounds on average, the former Kings knows he is expected at a higher level in his new role.
Traded for Domantas Sabonis, a two-time All-Star, Tyrese Haliburton returned to the podcast of the HoopCollective on this exchange that came out of nowhere. First surprised, the young leader of 21 years recognizes that he was still naive, not at all worried at the approach of the “trade deadline”…
“It was an overwhelming feeling. Especially since I had had no indication, nothing, nothing at all that made me believe that it could happen. It was the last thing I thought could happen. But it went very quickly. It started with a call from my agent at 10 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. My agent told me I might be traded but we had a game that night against the Timberwolves and the deadline was two days later. I told myself that we should not overreact and see what was going to happen. I still didn’t think, at that time, that it was going to happen, I thought it was rumors. But no, I was traded! It was a crazy day for me, very difficult with all the connections I had in Sacramento. But life goes on…”
Praised by everyone in Sacramento, and vocal about his desire to be part of the revival of the Kings, Tyrese Haliburton finally had to say goodbye to the Californian capital to join the country of the Hoosiers. In the young Pacers team, he knows he will have free rein while Malcolm Brogdon should pack his bags.
“Even in the last two months in Sacramento, I had games with a lot of assists and I hope it will continue like that. As I have the ball even more in my hands, you will see me at the top of the passers ranking next year. I try to make the right decisions but one of my greatest qualities is clearly making the game easier and finding shots for my teammates. “
“I think I will be able to score a little more”
Announced to the Pacers as the leader of the next decade, Tyrese Haliburton quickly pressed the brake pedal. His transfer vaccinated him on these grandiloquent declarations!
“I’ve heard that refrain before. It’s nothing against you, but I’ve heard that before. That’s why I really enjoyed my recent conversations with Harrison Barnes. The most important thing for me is not to get into this debate that wants to make me a franchise player or the most important player on the team… For me, it’s a debate for the media, to make clicks. I see myself being part of the hard core of the Pacers in the future but I don’t want to get involved in these debates. Yeah, I got traded for a two-time All-Star but all I can do is play basketball, that’s all I can control in the end. “
Instead of projecting as he had done in Sacramento, Tyrese Haliburton therefore prefers, wisely, to focus on his game and its impact on the Pacers. With Indiana, he will not only become one of the preferred options in attack, but he intends to further expand his arsenal to go as high as possible.
“I think I will be able to score a little more. My passes are up too but the defenses are adapting and playing the passing lines more. So it’s up to me to have them defend and also go get the baskets. I think Indiana expects me to shoot more than I did in Sacramento” he concludes thus.
| 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 | 55 | 35 | 46.0 | 41.7 | 83.3 | 0.7 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 7.7 | 1.4 | 1.7 | 2.4 | 0.6 | 14.7 |
| 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 | 4 | 39 | 48.3 | 45.2 | 81.2 | 0.3 | 4.0 | 4.3 | 11.0 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 3.5 | 0.0 | 20.8 |
| Total | 113 | 32 | 46.6 | 41.3 | 84.1 | 0.7 | 2.7 | 3.4 | 6.5 | 1.4 | 1.5 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 13.8 | |
