Tyrese Haliburton is too damn scary for everyone to be sleeping on the Pacers

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - JUNE 11: Tyrese Haliburton #0 of the Indiana Pacers reacts during the fourth quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game Three of the 2025 NBA Finals at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 11, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. | Getty Images The last player to knock the New York Knicks out in the postseason was Tyrese Haliburton. The strutting down the court that the Wisconsin native did in the 2025 Eastern Conference Finals is firmly implanted in every Knicks fan’s brain. It was a devastating loss for the Knicks, one that seems so far away from the titanic NBA Finals win that they would secure the next season. Before the post-title bliss that all Knicks fans inhabit, they got walked down by the Pacers, almost put on timeout like an evil babysitter, in a six-game series that became a proxy for Haliburton’s rise as an NBA superstar. He proved too difficult to handle, a general for a team that was shooting at a high clip, completely wearing the Knicks out on the defensive side of the ball while the offense could no longer keep up with the tempo that the Pacers played with. They did it with gamesmanship too, often looking at Reggie Miller’s heroics against the Knicks in the 1990s as a lodestar for the antics that Haliburton would use to annoy New Yorkers. In similar ways that Miller did, he became the opposite of a folk hero: an ancient legend used to caution Knick fans not to be too eager to celebrate too early. There’s something to be said about a rival that knows exactly how to pierce through a fan’s cocky armor, and Haliburton does that. So much of who Haliburton is has to do with his villainous swagger. He’s an easy guy to root against. To be a Knick fan was to be legitimately scared of Haliburton throughout that series, while his funky shot, his gangling gait, and his Midwestern eccentricities stomped the heart of every Knick fan that was expecting to advance to the NBA Finals. What was Haliburton’s best moment in that entire playoff run, before he was only stopped by an Achilles injury that made the Pacers’ chances to win the title in Oklahoma City kaput? You could give three answers: the final shot to beat the Cavaliers in game two of the conference semifinals, the shot to tie Game 1 against the Knicks in the conference finals, or the entirety of Game 4 of that series, one of the best playoff games that I have seen from a Knicks rival since the days of Michael Jordan. New York was stacked against Haliburton’s strut but even the darkest hater couldn’t stop themselves for having empathy towards Haliburton writhing in pain on the hardwood after his heel snapped in Game 7. Because of that injury, though, the Knicks’ chances to win got easier. Although Myles Turner was no longer on the Pacers regardless, the Knicks didn’t have to face Haliburton, who is aided by an equally tough player Pascal Siakam and Rick Carlisle, possibly the best coach in the entire NBA. For the Pacers, their unluckiness caused their rival to achieve glory that the Pacers have not yet attained. It must be strange to see your rival win partly from your unavailability, rendering your recent triumph against them as inconsequential. I’m interested in what Haliburton can do as the Pacers are healthy next season, looking to compete in a stacked Eastern Conference. FanDuel has their championship odds at +4000, and gives them the 9th best chance to win the East at +1600. That seems rightfully low (with a high reward!) since their best player is coming off a season-ending injury. However, consider Rick Carlisle; he’s had a year to look at what made the Knicks successful, and the mad scientist will tinker with whatever has a chance to work in the regular season to make sure it works in the postseason. The East is stacked, though. In a sentence that will never get old to type, the New York Knicks are the defending champions. They bring back Brunson, Anunoby, Bridges, Hart, and Towns, including having a hungry Alvarado and Shamet, bench studs eager to prove that the success last postseason was no fluke. The Philadelphia 76ers brought in LeBron James, in a move that still feels shocking. James, possibly the greatest player to ever play in the NBA, brings a championship pedigree to the hungry Sixers, great passing ability that is going to try to open up more shots for Jaylen Brown, who was just added in a trade with the rival Boston Celtics, and Tyrese Maxey, their young and talented point guard. The Toronto Raptors will (likely) add Kawhi Leonard, in a cheeky reunion with a man who already helped give them a memorable title, bolstering a defense that was already as strong as stone. In this Knicks-led era of the NBA, teams are now taking from their success: accumulating talent, hoping to spread out the offense, putting the emphasis on wing scoring and defense. They might not be able to replicate Brunson’s heroics, though. To compare the Pacers and the Knicks this upcoming season would be compelling. With Haliburton returning, pests like Andrew Nembhard remain a continual headache, visibly ready to hit back-breaking shots against teams, leaving them dumbfounded at the eventual loss staring them in the face. The Pacers are a dark horse. Haliburton has shown to be a bit of a kryptonite for Brunson and the Knicks, a player with the length not to let Mikal Bridges bother him. It is easy to forget to just how dynamic their offense was with Haliburton leading the team, spreading the ball like NBA Youngboy drops verses, putting a dent in the Knicks’ plans for domination. At its best, Indiana’s offense is almost randomly freewheeling, the sweet spot between chaotic and scripted, a controlled offense of unbridled movement. Can it continue? For a guy like Haliburton, who absolutely revels in proving detractors wrong, an on the court comeback seems optimal.

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