"When he gets back, that will be the cherry on the top" - Pacers president Kevin Pritchard explains why Tyrese Haliburton won't play next season
Indiana Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard announced on Monday that All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton will not play for the Pacers next season.
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Haliburton suffered an Achilles tear in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals. Although everyone expected him to miss a significant portion of the 2025-26 season, some Pacers fans still hoped he could return late in the regular season or during the playoffs. However, Pritchard said that the Pacers are taking a cautious approach by not rushing him back early.
"I have no doubt that he will be back better than ever. The surgery went well. ... He will not play next year, though. We would not jeopardize that now," Pritchard told reporters Monday, per WISH-TV News. "So don't get any hopes up that he will play. But then again, we'll have some guys, and hopefully they'll have some opportunities to grow. And when he gets back, that will be the cherry on top."
Pacers have plenty of young guard talent on board
Haliburton was the heart and soul of the Pacers during their run to the 2025 NBA Finals. Aside from his clutch shot-making and game-winners, Hali's pace and playmaking enabled Indiana to get past higher-ranked teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks on the East side of the postseason. He was off to a strong start, hitting three consecutive 3-pointers in Game 7, when he suffered the injury.
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Without Haliburton, the Pacers are likely to turn to Andrew Nembhard to be the team's primary playmaker, with NBA Finals cult hero T.J. McConnell and Ben Sheppard getting more minutes off the bench. But aside from the three, the Pacers have added point guards Quenton Jackson, Ray J Dennis, and 2025 38th pick Kam Jones, giving them the opportunity to prove their worth if they can make the final roster.
The Pacers opened with the 7th-best odds to win the Eastern Conference next season. But with guys like Pascal Siakam, Aaron Nesmith, Benedict Mathurin, and Obi Toppin, they still have a competitive lineup that could pull off surprises next season.
Pritchard said he would have prevented Hali from playing Game 7
As for Haliburton, Pritchard said that if it were only up to him, he would have instead sacrificed Game 7 to protect his star player. However, Hali insisted on playing and repeatedly said he would do it again even if he knew he could get seriously hurt.
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"(Haliburton's) told me many times ... 'I would do it over and over.' And if you're asking me, would I have him do it over and over? I would not," Pritchard said. "If I knew that he was going to get hurt, I would sacrifice that game because I care for the kid so much and want him to have an incredible career."
It's a pity the Pacers won't have that immediate chance to follow up on their success last season. But as Pritchard said, it also allows them to test and develop young players so that when Haliburton returns, they'll even be a deeper team than they were during their championship run.
Related: "ESPN had my name spelled wrong for the first two weeks of the season" - Tyrese Haliburton talks about being overlooked in college
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
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