Tyrese Haliburton broke into tears of joy on Wednesday night when he looked into the Smoothie King Center crowd and saw Indiana Pacers fans cheering his return from a torn Achilles tendon, which came during a 123-120 season-opening win over the New Orleans Pelicans.
Haliburton had expected his first emotional moment to come at the Pacers’ home opener on Friday. “The best part was the end and that moment,” he said after the game. “It’s been an emotional roller coaster. I’m telling you, what made me feel that way was seeing all those Pacers fans here in New Orleans. That was special.”
The two-time All-Star, who admitted he was gassed for much of the game, scored 16 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter and added 12 assists in 33 minutes as Indiana held on. It was his first game since he tore his right Achilles in a Game 7 loss to the 2025 NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder on June 22, 2025. Without him, the injury-plagued Pacers fell from Eastern Conference champions to a dismal 19-63 record last season.
A star returns
Pacers forward Pascal Siakam led all scorers with 30 points and praised his team-mate’s return. “He looked great. I told him it would take some time to get back to his shape,” Siakam said. “His shape is amazing with the pace and everything we play like. But the first game back, I’m just happy for him to be back on the floor. I know how hard last [season] was for him.”
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle was equally impressed. “Tyrese played extremely well. It’s the first time he played over 30 minutes in 16½ months.”
Haliburton’s opening stretch was a slow burn. He made his first shot of the season, a 4-foot runner that trimmed the Pelicans’ early lead to 10-8, and scored seven points in the first quarter. He then went scoreless in the second quarter and finished the first half with seven points on 3-of-8 shooting, missing four of five three-point attempts. He also had six assists in 17 minutes and 42 seconds.
Pelicans forward Zion Williamson dominated the first half with 15 of his 22 points, including a buzzer-beating three at the end of the second quarter that put Indiana behind 66-56 at the break.
“It felt good. It felt really good,” Haliburton said of his first made basket. “I think preseason prepared me for that in terms of not pressing and letting it come to me. I’m trying to play the right way and I got a layup that opened things up for me.”
Late-game heroics
Haliburton remained scoreless in the third quarter, but he began to take over in the fourth. With 9:31 remaining, he drew a foul on a dunk. He stoically enjoyed the moment as he lay under the basket, while his team-mates celebrated enthusiastically on the court and the bench.
He added a three-point play with 7:41 left to cut New Orleans’ lead to 101-98. A hockey assist from Haliburton then set up an alley-oop dunk for Ivica Zubac with 7:08 remaining, and the Pacers trimmed the deficit to 101-100.
Seconds later, a fired-up Haliburton appeared to taunt Pelicans big man Derik Queen. Both teams exchanged trash talk, and Haliburton was assessed a technical foul after a review. “I didn’t say anything. I want my money back for that technical,” he said with a smile.
Haliburton credited Pelicans guard Dejounte Murray, who tore his right Achilles on 31 January 2025, as his most important NBA mentor during his own recovery. He even asked Murray during the game about the keys to getting in better shape after an Achilles injury.
With Haliburton on the bench, the Pacers regained the lead at 106-104 on a layup from Andrew Nembhard with 5:38 remaining. Haliburton and Siakam returned rested with 4:14 left, just as Williamson made two free throws to tie the score. A running lay-in from Haliburton with two minutes to play put Indiana up 118-116, and another three-point play from him made it 121-118 with 1:23 remaining.
With about 20 seconds left, Nembhard declined to pass to Haliburton for a potential game-sealing shot. Some six seconds later, Nembhard travelled, handing the Pelicans a late chance. New Orleans then missed three three-pointers in the closing seconds, and the Pacers held on.
“It’s Game 1. What we appreciate about it is putting film on the coaches’ computers for us to watch. I will be thankful for that and prepare for Friday [against Dallas],” Haliburton said.
Support from home
Haliburton’s family, friends and business associates were there to see him play. His wife, Jade, whom he married during the offseason, hugged her emotional husband after the final buzzer. His parents, John and Brenda Haliburton, and his two brothers were also in attendance, along with his agent Aaron Mintz, shooting coach Drew Hanlen, marketing representative Kristina Kozica and other friends.
“My people flew out here. I think there was 12 people on the [private] plane,” Haliburton said. “My best friend, my brothers. My parents. My wife. My trainer. Mostly everybody. I think it was important for everybody to be there and they wanted to be there for me. It just means a lot.”