INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton wanted to play well with his father, John, back in Gainbridge Fieldhouse for the first time in two-plus weeks Tuesday night.
That wasn't the only motivation behind the best performance of his career.
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Haliburton made amends for the mistakes he made in Game 3 by finishing with 32 points, 15 assists, 12 rebounds, four steals and no turnovers in a 130-121 victory over the New York Knicks. He became the first NBA player with at least 30 points, 15 assists, 10 rebounds and no turnovers in a postseason game since turnovers were first tracked in 1977-78.
Then he poked some fun at the situation.
“I know people were saying, ‘Free Pops’ and Pops is free, but he was not in jail,” the younger Haliburton said after Indiana took a 3-1 lead. "He has a very beautiful home, very pretty to watch basketball. So he was just fine. I just wanted to win.”
There's no word yet on whether the father will attend Game 5 in New York when Indiana could clinch its second trip to the NBA Finals.
But all kidding aside, it's been an odd season — and postseason — for the younger Haliburton.
He started slowly, even telling reporters at one point he needed to find a way to have fun again. By March, Haliburton and the Pacers were rolling.
Then a publication dubbed the two-time All-Star as the NBA's most overrated player based on an anonymous survey of the league's players. All Haliburton has done since then is make two last-second game-winners, a buzzer-beater to force overtime and history on Tuesday night.
But perhaps the strangest twist came while he was celebrating his decisive layup with 1.3 seconds left in overtime to eliminate Milwaukee. While Haliburton jumped on the scorer's table, his father confronted Giannis Antetokounmpo on the court.
Though Haliburton acknowledged his father did the wrong thing and the elder Haliburton apologized on social media for his overexuberance, he was still banned from attending all Pacers games — home and away — indefinitely.
During those eight games, John Haliburton generated his own celebrity at local watering holes. He savored the 4-1 series victory over top-seeded Cleveland and two more wins at New York as the Pacers took the lead in the finals conference before his reappearance Tuesday — in a suite at the top of the lower bowl, located behind the basket closest to the Pacers bench.
“My dad is just fine. He lives just fine, he's watching the game in a beautiful home or he finds his way into a sports bar with a bunch of Pacers fans,” Haliburton said, drawing laughter. “There was a lot of commentary around him, especially right after, which I think some was warranted and some went a little too far, but I think that's just sports and that's just talking heads. What can you do? But I don't think there was any emotion to it.”
Starting center Myles Turner said after Monday's practice he thought it was important fathers watch their sons in person — especially in a conference final. Coach Rick Carlisle echoed those sentiments before Tuesday's game.
“Glad he's back,” Carlisle said. “You know a father should be able to watch his son play basketball, so we welcome him back.”
Apparently, the Pacers and league officials felt the same way, even though the younger Haliburton never complained publicly about the punishment.
Instead, Tyrese Haliburton said he understood the decision while explaining his father's excitement was more about being proud rather than any malicious intent. And on Tuesday night, he produced the kind of game that his father will never forget.
“Obviously, my dad being here is special,” Haliburton said. “But growing up, he was working a lot on weekends so he didn't come to a lot of my games and when he did come to my games, I wanted to play well. So, of course, I wanted to play well."
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