Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton was removed from Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals vs. Boston with 3:44 left in the third quarter and didn’t return. The team announced (via Twitter) that Haliburton was dealing with left leg soreness, while ESPN Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link) specifies that it was hamstring pain that forced the 24-year-old out of action.
It’s a concerning development for the Pacers, given that Haliburton strained his left hamstring in January and missed 10 games as a result of that injury — he attempted to return after just five games, but ended up missing five more following that lone appearance.
There’s no reason yet to think that his new hamstring issue is as significant as the previous one, but with the Pacers facing a 2-0 deficit in the series following Boston’s victory on Thursday, they’ll be in real trouble if the All-NBA guard has to miss any additional time.
After battling low back spasms, a right ankle sprain, and a sacral contusion during the Eastern semifinals, Haliburton once again had to deal with multiple health issues on Thursday. As Joe Vardon of The Athletic tweets, the Pacers star underwent imaging on a sore chest at halftime of Game 2. According to Jared Weiss of The Athletic (Twitter link), when Haliburton was warming up at halftime, he was shaking his head and slamming the ball on the floor in frustration.
If Haliburton is forced to miss any games going forward, the Pacers would have to lean more heavily on guards Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell as ball-handlers and play-makers. Game 3 is scheduled for Saturday in Indiana.