‘Overrated' Tyrese Haliburton having last laugh after latest winner

Straits Times

16 hours ago

Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton drives to the basket past Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort during Game 1 of the NBA Finals. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
OKLAHOMA CITY – Two months after being named the NBA's 'most overrated player' in an anonymous poll of his peers, Tyrese Haliburton is having the last laugh.
The point guard delivered on June 5 his latest in a series of game-winning moments with a last-gasp basket as the Indiana Pacers stunned the Oklahoma City Thunder 111-110 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
Haliburton's winning bucket – with just 0.3secs remaining – was the latest entry to an impressive catalogue of clutch shots he has pulled off since the play-offs got under way.
The Pacers talisman has now made a go-ahead or game-tying basket in the final five seconds of regulation or overtime on four separate occasions during the post-season.
'I'm obviously confident in my ability and feel like if I can get to that spot, I feel very comfortable in there,' the 25-year-old said of his winner. 'It's a shot I've worked on a million times and I'll work on it a million times more. Just have confidence in that shot.'
His winner came after the NBA's newly crowned Most Valuable Player, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, had missed a 15-foot jump shot that would have given the Thunder a three-point cushion with 11 seconds left.
Ironically, the same player poll in The Athletic in April which dubbed Haliburton 'overrated' had overwhelmingly backed Gilgeous-Alexander as front-runner for MVP. Haliburton did not even feature in the shortlist of contenders.
Indiana centre Myles Turner says Haliburton is at his best when the chips are down, relishing the pressure of when a game is on the line.
'Ultimate, ultimate confidence in himself' is how Turner described Haliburton.
'Some players will say they have it but there's other players that show it, and he's going to let you know about it, too. He's a baller and a hooper and really just a gamer,' he said.
'When it comes to the moments, he wants the ball. He wants to be the one to hit that shot. He doesn't shy away from the moment and very important this time of the year to have a go-to guy. He just keeps finding a way and we keep putting the ball in the right positions and the rest is history.'
Haliburton's knack of delivering under pressure has become emblematic of a Pacers side that gives the impression of a team that has forgotten how to lose.
Their latest comeback marked the fifth time during these play-offs when the team has recovered from a 15-point-or-greater deficit to win.
'Through the course of the game it felt like it could get ugly,' Haliburton reflected afterwards.
'I thought we did a great job of just walking them down. When it gets to 15, you can panic or you can talk about how do we get it to 10 and how do we get it to five and from there.
'I don't know what you say about it but I know that this group is a resilient group and we don't give up.'
Looking ahead to Game 2 on June 8 (June 9, Singapore time), the Thunder will know what the Pacers are all about by now.
Gilgeous-Alexander said they must stick to the principles that made them the best team in the NBA regular season – 68-14 win-loss record – as they seek to bounce back from their devastating loss.
'As much as we can, we just got to treat it like every other game, every other situation we've been in,' the point guard said. 'Yes, we haven't been in this situation (in the Finals), but that doesn't mean our character has to change, or what we did last time.
'It's still basketball, the game of basketball we grew up playing. The rules don't change because we're in the Finals.' AFP, REUTERS
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