WATCH: Tyrese Haliburton hits game winning jumper for Pacers against Chicago Bulls
Indiana Pacers All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton is not afraid of clutch moments.
He's hit big shots down the stretch of games all season long for the blue and gold. He makes great passes to his teammates when the game requires it. And as the season has progressed and his skills have evolved, he has attempted to score with the game hanging in the balance.
Against the Miami Heat last December, he knocked down his first game winner of the season with just over two seconds remaining. It was a big moment in the young guard's career.
On Sunday in Chicago, Haliburton did it again. With the Pacers and Chicago Bulls tied at 122 late, Haliburton was looking to wiggle free to find space for a potential game-winning shot attempt.
"They just kept jumping heavy on my right hand, so [I] had a lot of rejects going left. Felt comfortable that [Patrick Beverley] was going to jump on my right hand, I'd be able to get downhill left," Haliburton described of his clutch jumper against the Bulls. "But he came up and pressured me. Felt like against Boston, I had a shot with like four seconds [left] that I didn't take. Waited til the buzzer and ended up taking a bad shot. So I just shot the first one that I saw [tonight] and it felt good when it left my hands," he added.
With 4.6 seconds to go on the clock, Haliburton stepped back to create space away from Beverley. He took a three from about 30 feet away from the basket and reminded everyone that he is still a machine in the clutch.
"He's really like that," Pacers forward Jordan Nwora said after the game.
Haliburton finished the game with 29 points and 11 assists. Indiana head coach Rick Carlisle praised his balance of scoring and distributing earlier in the afternoon, but when Haliburton was asked what he was thinking in terms of balance on the final play, he made it clear how he attacked.
"Well, the game's on the line, so there's no balance. [I'm] shooting the ball," he said.
He's earned the right to do that with the clutch plays he has made all season. And he did it again on Sunday to propel the Pacers to a huge win.
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