Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton suffered a significant lower leg injury during the first quarter of Game 7 of the NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Haliburton couldn’t put pressure on the leg and needed assistance walking off the floor on Sunday.
Haliburton collapsed to the ground after attempting to drive with the ball with 4:55 remaining. Immediately after, Haliburton slapped the ground and was in visible pain. Haliburton had been playing through a calf strain, and there’s concern that the injury may be a torn Achilles tendon.
Tyrese Haliburton injury: Torn Achilles feared for Pacers star after exiting NBA Finals Game 7 in serious pain
Brad Botkin
NBA stars were quick to react to Haliburton’s injury on social media, and some drew parallels to another prominent NBA Finals injury — the Achilles tear suffered by Kevin Durant in Game 5 of the 2019 Finals. Like Haliburton, Durant had been dealing with a calf injury in the lead up to that particular game.
Draymond Green, Durant’s then-teammate with the Golden State Warriors, posted on Threads that Haliburton’s injury was “too familiar” in an obvious reference to Durant.
“Damn man… smh too familiar” Green wrote.
ESPN reported earlier this week that Haliburton’s calf injury could’ve sidelined him for multiple weeks. Instead, Haliburton played in Indiana’s Game 6 win and was off to a dream start in Game 7 by knocking three 3-pointers during the first seven minutes of action. Indiana’s entire team and coaching staff gathered around Haliburton before he was helped to the locker room.
Following Haliburton’s unfortunate exit, the NBA world reacted and showed an outpour of love and support, including Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James, who had succinct and understandable reaction to the injury.
Two other Eastern Conference stars — Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics and Damian Lillard of the Milwaukee Bucks — suffered Achilles tears during the playoffs, and it’s possible that Haliburton could be the third. Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell commented on how serious calf strains can be, as did longtime NBA player Isaiah Thomas.
San Antonio Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox, who played with Haliburton on the Sacramento Kings in the early 2020s, was also shocked by the injury.
Halliburton’s father, John Haliburton, understandably was stunned.
More NBA players, including New York Knicks teammates Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Karl-Anthony Towns, sent their best wishes to Haliburton.
