NEW YORK (USA) - The smile is always there for Tyrese Haliburton, the tall and athletic point guard of the Indiana Pacers.
He's playing the game he loves and making the Pacers look like a team of destiny.
First were his heroics against the Milwaukee Bucks, in the First Round of the Eastern Conference Play-offs. After Indiana forced two turnovers in the last 29 seconds of overtime, Haliburton drove past Greece hoops icon Giannis Antetokounmpo for the go-ahead layup with 1.3 seconds left to cap an 8-0 run and give the Pacers a 119-118 victory for a 4-1 series triumph.
Cleveland were then victimized by Haliburton's heroics when his 3-ball with 1.1 seconds left gave the Pacers a stunning 120-119 win for a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. Indiana won that series, 4-1, with Haliburton scoring 31 points in the Game 5 clincher.
Now Haliburton, 25, has delivered against the New York Knicks, helping Indiana win the opener after burying a step-back jumper to force overtime. The ball bounced high off the rim but then fell through the hoop to knot the game at 125-125 to force OT.
Channeling his inner Reggie Miller after thinking his jumper had been a game-winning 3, Haliburton copied what the Knick Killer had done in his playing days at Madison Square Garden by putting both hands to his neck as if to tell the opponents they had choked.
Indiana still won after overtime, 138-135.
It didn't take too long for Haliburton to shine once again as he dominated Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals with a historic 32 points, 12 rebounds, 15 assists, 4 steals, on 0 turnovers.
It turns out that Haliburton has played some FIBA ball, too.
When he suited up for USA at the 2019 FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup, Haliburton averaged 25 minutes per game and hardly put a foot wrong. His 6.9 assists per game ranked No. 1 in the competition and his assists to turnover ratio was 6 to 1! The USA won all seven of their games and Haliburton reached the top of the podium. He made the All-Star Five.
Four years later and Haliburton made the jump to the USA World Cup 2023 team and played in Manila.
He dazzled in the Philippines, too. His passes were exquisite. He averaged team highs in assists (5.9 per game) and steals (1.5) and was second in blocks (1.1) to go along with his 8.6 points per game.
Sharing time with Jalen Brunson at point guard, Haliburton put in some great performances for the Americans. He had the third highest efficiency (15.5 per game) on the team.
In one game especially, against Italy in the Quarter-Finals, Haliburton played the way he is right now in the NBA post-season. He buried 6 of 8 shots from behind the arc for all 18 of his points, and also had 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and a block.
Haliburton was a combined 4 of 15 from the floor in the Semi-Final defeat to Germany and the Third-Place Game setback to Canada, yet he also averaged 7.5 assists over those two games.
Coach Steve Kerr appreciated Haliburton's enthusiasm and team play so much that he included him in the USA team for the Men's Olympic Basketball Tournament Paris 2024.
While he only played sparingly in three of USA's five games, his upbeat nature and team-first mentality made Haliburton an invaluable member of the squad that captured the gold medal.
Look for more Haliburton in future FIBA competitions.
FIBA