During the team’s Game 2 Eastern Conference Finals loss to the Boston Celtics, Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton left the game early due to a hamstring injury. According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Haliburton re-aggravated the same hamstring that kept him out of action for multiple games in January. Furthermore, Charania says Haliburton’s status for Game 3 is “up in the air.”
“Tyrese Haliburton is the Pacers engine and they rely on him to set the table.. His status is up in the air because of reaggravating his hamstring and I’m told that he also had X-rays on his chest at halftime last night”
Before his departure, Haliburton recorded 10 points, four rebounds, eight assists, and a steal. Furthermore, he shot 4-for-8 from the field and 2-for-6 from beyond the arc.
The Pacers head back to Indiana for Game 3 in hopes of avoiding a 3-0 series deficit. So far in the postseason, the Pacers are undefeated at home. Whether they will be with their All-NBA guard or not remains to be seen.
This is the play in the 3rd quarter where Tyrese Haliburton appeared to suffer a leg injury.
He left the game and was ruled OUT for the remainder of Game 2 vs. the Celtics
pic.twitter.com/7jbacfe7Nl
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) May 24, 2024
Injury Update for Indiana Pacers Star Revealed
Pacers Must Step Up if Tyrese Haliburton Misses Game 3
The Pacers are already facing a tall task down 2-0 in their series against the Celtics. And if Haliburton were to miss any time, it would be a big blow to their NBA Finals aspirations. However, nobody on the team is preparing to give up. After Game 2, Pacers guard T.J. McConnell spoke about needing to “step up” in Haliburton’s potential absence.
“That’s a time for this group for everyone to step up and take a bigger role,” Pacers guard T.J. McConnell said on the prospect of playing without Haliburton. “We’ve done a good job of that when he’s been out. It hurts when he goes down, but one of those things where it’s the ‘next man up’ mentality. Obviously, we’ll see. We haven’t heard anything yet, but guys will just have to step up and be ready.”
Furthermore, Pascal Siakam, who scored 28 points in Game 2, echoed McConnell’s comments.
“We need Ty, but next man mentality. We’ve got to play together,” he said. “This team got where we’re at by playing together. … It’s on us to continue to play and bring that energy.”
The Last Word on Tyrese Haliburton
If Haliburton misses Game 3, the Pacers will likely rely more heavily on McConnell and Andrew Nembhard in the backcourt. During the regular season, the Pacers went 7-6 in the games Haliburton missed. This includes a 155-107 blowout loss to Boston in November. However, they have won their last three games without Haliburton on the court. Regardless, it will be difficult for the Pacers to win four games against the Celtics if the 24-year-old misses any time.
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