Stephen A. Smith Has Bold Strategy for How Thunder Should Defend Injured Pacers Star

Stephen A. Smith has never been one to hold back a hot take.

On Thursday night ahead of Game 6 of the NBA Finals between the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder, Smith fired off one of his hottest yet.

Addressing how the Thunder should handle Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton, who is set to play in Game 6 despite battling through a leg injury, Smith suggested playing Haliburton soft, rather than risk the threat of the Pacers giving T.J. McConnell extended minutes.

"This is gonna sound crazy, what I'm about to say,” Smith began, offering more self-awareness than one might usually expect from the ESPN commentator. “If I'm OKC, I actually employ the tactic of not pressing Haliburton too much, because I know the brother’s limited. So because he's limited, let me let that facade be out there, that he can go! Because I don't want to deal with that energizer bunny T.J. McConnell!"

“You might not want to force him out of the game early,” Smith concluded.

Stephen A. Smith: "This is gonna sound crazy, what I'm about to say! If I'm OKC, I actually employ the tactic of not pressing Haliburton... Because he's limited, let me let that facade be out there that he can go! I don't want to deal with that energizer bunny T.J. McConnell!" https://t.co/GcBQyvu876 pic.twitter.com/2X9l44617g
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 19, 2025

While Smith’s pitch does sound pretty wild on its face, based on how Game 5 ended, it’s not hard to see why he’s making the argument. McConnell was indeed a spark at guard when he took over for Haliburton in the third quarter of Game 5, and Haliburton was ineffective when he got back on the floor to close the game.

That said, Haliburton has shown up with big shot after big shot after big shot for the Pacers this postseason. If they are going to go down in a do-or-die game, there’s little doubt he’s going to be on the floor swinging.

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