Tyrese Haliburton downplays delayed arrival to OKC due to storms
Tyrese Haliburton downplays delayed arrival to OKC due to storms
Well, the Indiana Pacers' arrival in OKC could've gone smoother. As storms and tornadoes took over Oklahoma, the Eastern Conference champion had its flight delayed due to the weather. The mini-stoppage took over NBA Twitter as local folks joked it was an appropriate welcome to the state.
The Oklahoma City Thunder held their 2025 NBA Finals Media Day on Wednesday. The Pacers soon followed. A common question asked by the sea of media members was about their impromptu stop at the Tulsa airport before they returned to the air to OKC.
Tyrese Haliburton shrugged his shoulders about the stop. He said while the stormy weather delayed their arrival, you can't use that as an excuse or complain about it with nearly two days before the NBA Finals tip off in Thursday's Game 1.
"As far as yesterday, we took off, and I slept the whole plane ride, which I don't normally do. We landed, I was ready to get up. They said we were in Tulsa. We sat there for another hour. Then took off again. Felt like we were in the air for another hour and a half," Haliburton said. "What time did we land? 7:00? Normally like 8:00 back home. So, like a five-hour travel day. We might as well travel to Portland. Yeah, it's a long travel day. What can you do? None of us can control the weather. There's worse problems in life. We'll be fine."
This is why you love the NBA. It's a 24/7 soap opera. The games only last two hours, but the drama that surrounds the sport never stops. Sometimes that takes the form of funny bits. The Pacers' plane being stuck in Tulsa because of tornadoes on their way to their biggest franchise game since 2000 is an example of that.
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USA Today
an hour ago
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