The Indiana Pacers are exceeding expectations for the 2022-23 season, and it's all thanks to the emergence of Tyrese Haliburton as the heir apparent to the Point God moniker. Blessed with unselfishness and elite court vision, Haliburton is a foundational piece that evidently makes his teammates better. However, it seems as though an injury could put a bit of a damper on what had been an All-Star caliber season for the Pacers point guard thus far.
With the Pacers down by 16, 89-73, to the New York Knicks with only 2:32 left in the third quarter, the Pacers substituted Chris Duarte in for Tyrese Haliburton. Since then, Haliburton hasn't played after the Pacers ruled him out for the rest of the game due to knee soreness, per Stefan Bondy of New York Daily News. On the night, Haliburton finished with 15 points and seven assists in his first matchup against the Knicks since Wally Szczerbiak, an analyst for MSG Network, called him a “wannabe All-Star”.
It remains unclear just how severe the knee injury Haliburton suffered is. What's clear is that it was serious enough that it kept him out amid the Pacers' comeback bid on Wednesday night. Nonetheless, the Pacers remain locked in. Since Haliburton's departure, they have inched closer and closer to the Knicks, even cutting the lead to four at one point. At the time of writing, however, the Pacers are still down to the Knicks, but by a more reasonable seven-point deficit, 105-98.
At 23-18, the Pacers are currently sixth in the Eastern Conference, a game above the seventh-place Knicks. Try as Indiana might, they will need Tyrese Haliburton to be at his healthiest so they could take their surprising season even further, perhaps even with an outright playoff berth.
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