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Injured Tyrese Haliburton Embraced Every Pacers Teammate After NBA Finals Loss

Despite his devastating injury, Haliburton was still there for his teammates after the NBA Finals loss.

Tim Capurso

Haliburton exited the game in the first quarter with an Achilles injury.
Haliburton exited the game in the first quarter with an Achilles injury. / Screengrab Twitter @SportsCenter
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In a devastating turn of events, Indiana Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton exited in the first quarter of his team's eventual Game 7 NBA Finals loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder with an Achilles injury. The injury robbed Haliburton, who emerged as one of the league's best postseason performers with his late-game heroics for the Pacers, of the opportunity to help lead his team to the finish line.

Despite the injury, Haliburton remained in the locker room to cheer on Indiana, who entered halftime leading the Thunder by one point. And even though Haliburton had to be feeling a whole host of emotions after the tough loss, he was still there to greet every one of his teammates as they headed past him in the tunnel.

Now that's leadership. Unfortunately, the Pacers' improbable playoff run didn't end the way Haliburton or his teammates wanted. But the team should hold its head high, not only for its incredible resilience through adversity in the postseason, but also for how it battled in the wake of Haliburton's injury.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

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