Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton suffered a hamstring injury during Thursday night's 126-110 loss to the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals, and he has been ruled out for Game 3 on Saturday.
Haliburton exited Game 2 with just under three minutes left in the third quarter and limped to the locker room. Shortly afterward, the Pacers ruled their point guard out for the rest of the game with left hamstring soreness. He finished with 10 points, eight assists and four rebounds in 28 minutes.
Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said after Game 2 that Haliburton's hamstring was sore at halftime, but he elected to test it during the third quarter.
"He gave it a shot and gave it all the effort that he could," Carlisle said. "It wasn't going well. So the trainers determined that he needed to go to the back and get worked on."
The injury appeared to take place as Haliburton defended Celtics forward Jayson Tatum. Moving laterally, Haliburton took an awkward step and grimaced as he stumbled sideways.
Here's the play where Tyrese Haliburton injured his left leg. @wojespn says it's "hamstring soreness". @ProFootballDoc you got any insight? pic.twitter.com/UFBXYJ8tPY
— Chad Ryan (@ChadwikoTWW) May 24, 2024
The injury is extra worrisome for the Pacers given that Haliburton missed 10 games during the regular season with a left hamstring strain, the same one that he hurt on Thursday. After an incredible start to the season, Haliburton's numbers dipped significantly following his return from the injury at the end of January. Some speculated that he may have returned earlier than usual in an effort to meet the league's newly imposed 65-game threshold for awards consideration.
| Tyrese Haliburton reg. season | PTS | AST | FG% | 3P% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Pre-injury | 23.6 | 12.5 | 49.7% | 40.3% |
Post-injury | 16.8 | 9.3 | 45.5% | 32.4% |
Even with the statistical decline, Haliburton still led the league in assists per game (10.9) and was named to the All-NBA Third Team on Wednesday, an accomplishment which allows him to receive an extra $41 million on the contract extension he signed last offseason.
The engine of Indiana's high-octane offense, Haliburton has gone through an up-and-down postseason, with averages of 18.7 points, 8.2 assists and 4.8 rebounds on 49/38/85 shooting splits. His scoring has been a bit of a bellwether for the Pacers, as he's averaged 21 points in wins compared to 16 points in losses.
With Haliburton expected to miss Game 3, the point guard duties will likely be split between starting shooting guard Andrew Nembhard and backup TJ McConnell. Prior to Thursday's loss, Nembhard was plus-23 for the playoffs and McConnell was minus-five, while Haliburton clocked in at plus-59. Needless to say, the Pacers will need their floor leader if they're going to have any chance of winning four of the next five games against the powerhouse Celtics.
