After watching Trick Williams and “All Ego” Ethan Page duke it out instead of signing their contract for a title match during the opening segment of the show, NXT GM Ava announced that she needed help to get the deal done in time for the promotion's debut on The CW and called on none other than Tyrese Haliburton, the Indiana Pacers star guard, to help get the deal done.
… what in the professional sports adlib is that all about?
Now granted, it's not like Haliburton hasn't been connected to WWE in the past, as he's appeared on television for the promotion on multiple occasions, including a very interesting angle earlier this summer where he and Jalen Brunson got very close to physical as part of a grander angle with Logan Paul and LA Knight at Madison Square Garden, but what connection does he have to NXT?
Was he in Orlando working out with Palo Bnacharo and company before basketball activities start to pick up in Indiana? Or is he simply a three-for-three WWE fan, connecting with Ava and talking turkey about everything from BBall to her father, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson's movie career?
Either way, in the main event of the show, it will be Haliburton making sure everyone goes by the books, which can either go very well, very poorly, or very weirdly. Let's hope Shawn Michaels is up to date on his insurance payments, as if he isn't, this could be a costly main event for HBK if something goes south.
Tyrese Haliburton threw shade at the Orlando Magic in NXT debut
Taking the ring in his all-over print Shawn Michaels print shirt, Haliburton walked out to the ring and went about his business, but not before taking a few shots at a certain local sports team first.
“Ava tried a little bit earlier, it didn't work, so I'm here to make sure Trick Williams and Ethan Page get this contract signed. But I didn't come alone; I brought reinforcements of my own,” Tyrese Haliburton explained as the crowd showed his Pacers teammates in the front row. “And I get it, I would boo too if I had to be an Orlando Magic fan, I get it, I get it. But we're not here to talk about that.”
As the crowd booed the Pacers All-Star and would continue to boo him for the rest of the show, he brought out the two men needed to make things official Williams – who Hali repeatedly called his brother – and Page, who himself had some less than savory things to say about Indiana's top performer, comparing himself to the Boston Celtics and Trick Willie to the blue, yellow, silver, and white.
“This is absolutely ridiculous. Trick! Trick. I gave you an out earlier, but you decided to come out here and stutter anyways. But you know what? That’s absolutely fine with me. If this is what you want, you wanna force me to sign this contract, I’ll do it. But let me put this in a way that you and your pal here will understand. When it comes to this championship, Ethan Page is the Boston Celtics. And on October first when I beat you in Chicago, you will be like the Indiana Pacers and the rest of the NBA because you’re gonna have to watch me be victorious, carry this championship, this entire company and brand, and the Era of Ego will continue to make history. Now hold that open so I could sign it.”
Welp, there you go, folks; not only did Page sign the contract, but he also decided to take the oldest page out of the professional wrestling playbook – talking smack on a sports team – and while you had to have a certain level of sports knowledge to understand the references, it sure cheesed off both Williams and the NXT audience all the same.
Fortunately, Haliburton had a card up his sleeve too to get the last laugh – as any semi-babyface should – and requested production play CM Punk's music, walking off camera but not before he got dabbed up by the “Best in the World.”
So, what was the point of this segment? Frankly, I have no clue; Haliburton really didn't have a connection to either man in the ring, to NXT, or to the city of Orlando outside of his basketball career. Swap him out with, well, anyone else from the basketball, baseball, or even football world – Baker Mayfield would have been cool – and the segment would have been exactly the same.
Still, Haliburton is now a certified member of the WWE Universe, with a page on the official roster website almost certainly coming in the not-too-distant future. What does that mean for the future? It's impossible to say, but considering his commitments to the Pacers, it's borderline impossible to imagine he'll start a Logan Paul-esque side career in the squared circle any time soon unless he's ready to retire from the NBA.
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