Tyrese Haliburton Is Taking His WWE Lore to a New Level

The staredown with Jalen Brunson won't be Hali's only WWE cameo.
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton at WWE Monday Night Raw on June 24, 2024.
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton at WWE Monday Night Raw on June 24, 2024. / WWE/Getty Images

It has been quite the WWE-filled week for the NBA.

After the New York Knicks defeated the Boston Celtics to advance to the Eastern Conference finals, where they'll face the Indiana Pacers, a clip of Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton and Knicks guard Jalen Brunson squaring up at a WWE SmackDown last summer resurfaced online, spawning hilarious chatter about NFL-esque scriptwriting in the World Wrestling Entertainment universe.

And now, just days later, it has been revealed that users will actually be able to play as Haliburton, a known wrestling fan, in the new WWE 2K25 game.

Specifically, Hali will be available in the game's Dunk & Destruction pack.

Per the initial graphic shared online, it would also seem Haliburton's in-game character is wearing the "Tyrese 3:17" shirt the hooper has worn to at least one WWE appearance in real life. A fun touch.

The guard joined this week's Monday Night RAW to break the news.

"I'm really excited," he said. "Obviously, I got the opportunity to come and be in the Garden and experience that and get in the ring a little bit. So, I'm excited about being a playable character in the game and, yeah, it's going to be super cool."

All in all, a great development for Indiana Pacers fans looking to get their Haliburton fix this offseason. Because sometimes, "WTHELLY" just won't cut it.


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Brigid Kennedy
BRIGID KENNEDY

Brigid Kennedy is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, she covered political news, sporting news and culture at TheWeek.com before moving to Livingetc, an interior design magazine. She is a graduate of Syracuse University, dual majoring in television, radio and film (from the Newhouse School of Public Communications) and marketing managment (from the Whitman School of Management). Offline, she enjoys going to the movies, reading and watching the Steelers.