Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton opened up about his Achilles tear.
Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton was a guest on the "Numbers On The Board" podcast and he was asked to talk about his Achilles tear.
Haliburton tore his Achilles in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
"I don’t know if I’ll ever get over it," Haliburton said. "When I strained my calf, I knew it was a possibility. We knew that internally. Kendrick Perkins was going on TV talking about don't play. Get the f*** out of here. What is he talking about don't play. I knew it was a possibility.
"In that moment, everyone talks about how it feels like you got kicked. I knew right away because Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was in front of me. So I was like how did he kick me? There was a short moment while I was falling where I was like how did he kick me in the back of my leg? And then I was like oh s***.
"But those emotions were much more I can't believe this is happening right now vs. that it happened because injuries are a part of the game and I know I'm going to be fine and I know we're going to be fine as a group and life goes on. But it was just like not now. Anytime but right now because everything felt like it was clicking at that moment."
The Pacers may have won Game 7 had Haliburton not gotten hurt. It was a cruel turns of events for Indiana.
One of the top players in the NBA, Haliburton had an outstanding 2024-25 campaign for the Pacers. He averaged 18.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, 9.2 assists, 1.4 steals and 0.7 blocks per game and made the All-NBA Third Team.
Haliburton is averaging 19.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 10.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.6 blocks per game in a Pacers uniform. He signed a five-year, $244 million extension with the Pacers in July 2023. The talented floor general will make $48,924,624 next season, $52,298,736 in 2027-28 and $55,672,848 in 2028-29, the final year of his deal.
Indiana is expected to start Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam and Ivica Zubac next season. That's a strong starting five on paper.
Haliburton has career averages of 17.5 points and 8.8 assists per game in the regular season and 17.9 points and 8.4 assists per game in the playoffs. The basketball world can't wait to see Hali play again.
