Tyrese Haliburton set to return for Indiana Pacers vs Boston Celtics
Indiana Pacers All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton is set to return from a six-game injury absence tonight against the Boston Celtics.
Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star, who was present for Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle's pregame media availability on Friday, shared that Haliburton will return tonight in the TD Garden. The 23-year old guard has missed Indiana's last half-dozen outings with knee and ankle injuries.
Haliburton is vital to the Pacers' success. The team is 5-14 without him this season despite having a 28-26 mark when he plays. Indiana has many new, younger pieces this year, but they have struggled to gel without the All-Star.
That said, in their recent stretch without Haliburton, the Pacers went 3-3. Andrew Nembhard's impressive play at the point guard spot helped the blue and gold stay afloat in their play-in chase.
Haliburton is averaging 20.8 points and 10.4 assists per game this season, including 27.5 points and 11 assists per game against the Celtics. He's in the mix for an All-NBA spot at guard.
With the star ball handler back in the mix, Nembhard's role will likely change to feature more off-ball work. T.J. McConnell and Bennedict Mathurin will get fewer on-ball reps, too, though they will still play important minutes and have large roles. One of Indiana's second unit players will lose significant playing time with Haliburton back, though it isn't clear who.
Chris Duarte, a second-year forward for the Pacers who has missed the last four games with left ankle soreness, remains out, per Dopirak. Duarte was having a solid month of March prior to the injury, but his return is still on hold.
The Pacers are 33-40 and are just 1.5 games out of the final play-in tournament spot in the Eastern Conference. Haliburton's return could help the blue and gold on their quest to play postseason basketball.
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