Tyrese Haliburton plays through injury, sparks Pacers to force Game 7

Tyrese Haliburton plays through injury, sparks Pacers to force Game 7

INDIANAPOLIS — For Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton, one good leg was more than enough to deny the Oklahoma City Thunder in its first chance to win the NBA championship.

Haliburton gutted through a right calf strain that limited his mobility to spark Indiana’s 108-91 Game 6 victory over Oklahoma City at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Thursday night, pushing the NBA Finals to Game 7 for the first time since 2016. The Thunder will host the winner-take-all series finale Sunday night.

After suffering the leg injury in a poor Game 5 showing in which he scored just four points and missed all six of his shot attempts, Haliburton started tentatively Thursday with the Pacers’ season hanging in the balance. The two-time all-star wasn’t alone: Indiana missed its first eight shots and quickly fell into a 10-2 hole.

But the Pacers pulled themselves together during an early timeout and erased the Thunder’s advantage in a matter of minutes. Haliburton, who finished with 14 points and five assists in 23 minutes, then proceeded to blow open the game in the second quarter with a series of highlights to help Indiana build an insurmountable 64-42 halftime lead.

After nabbing a steal and finding Aaron Nesmith for a corner three-pointer, Haliburton drilled a three-pointer of his own and dropped in a left-handed runner in the paint. With Oklahoma City seeking to pull back within striking distance shortly before halftime, Haliburton grabbed another steal and dished a no-look pass to Pascal Siakam for a transition dunk.

“Energy plays are important in the game of basketball,” Haliburton said. “That’s a special moment, especially because we are always getting on Pascal for not dunking anymore. That was cool to see. It was definitely a lot of fun. If we are fortunate enough to go on and win this thing, I think that play will be remembered for a long time.”

Siakam, who posted 16 points and 13 rebounds, capped Indiana’s 36-17 second-quarter blitz by draining a turnaround jumper at the halftime buzzer to send the Thunder to the locker room looking for answers.

Oklahoma City never found any and instead learned a simple lesson in excruciating fashion: No points, no title. Thunder stars Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams combined for 31 points in the first half, but their teammates managed just 11 points on 5-for-17 shooting. That offensive imbalance was made worse by an uncharacteristically sloppy night for Gilgeous-Alexander, who struggled to read the Pacers’ defensive schemes and set a playoff career-high by committing eight turnovers.

“[The thought of winning a championship] was definitely in the back of our minds,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Now, we didn’t play like it at all. That’s why the night went the way it did. We got exactly what we deserved and what we earned. We have to own that. ... I don’t feel like I have to do anything other than just be the best version of myself [in Game 7]. I think that goes for everyone else in the room.”

The Oklahoma City Thunder trailed the Indiana Pacers by as many as 31 points in a Game 6 blowout loss at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Thursday night. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

The Thunder couldn’t muster a point in the first five minutes of the third quarter, robbing the proceedings of any late-game drama. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 21 points and Williams added 16 points, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Oklahoma City’s 8-for-30 three-point shooting and 21 turnovers. Thunder Coach Mark Daigneault sat his starters for the fourth quarter as the Pacers’ lead ballooned to 31, allowing Haliburton to rest for the game’s final 17 minutes.

“Obviously, it was a very poor performance by us,” Daigneault said. “A lot of it was an offensive issue, especially in the first half. We were really stagnant. Indiana was great and we were not. We have to look in the mirror and learn from the game.”

Haliburton’s courageous showing came after several days of uncertainty about his availability and in front of a crowd that included Pacers legends Reggie Miller and Mark Jackson. Pacers Coach Rick Carlisle was noncommittal at Wednesday’s practice when asked about Haliburton, and Haliburton suggested his injury might have sidelined him for weeks if it had occurred during the regular season. He said his comprehensive treatment included an MRI exam and a “massage, needles, a hyperbaric [chamber] ... and the right tape.”

Some media commentators even suggested Haliburton should sit out Game 6 to prevent the risk of a more serious injury, noting that then-Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant had suffered a torn Achilles’ tendon in Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals, his first game back after missing nine games with a calf strain. The Indiana crowd sat anxiously through the opening minutes, seemingly worried that the Pacers’ exhilarating playoff run was going to sputter out because of the unfortunate timing of Haliburton’s injury.

“I have to be as smart as I want to be,” Haliburton said Wednesday. “I have to understand the risks, ask the right questions. I have a lot of trust in our medical staff. I have a lot of trust in our organization to make the right decision. I think there’s been many situations through the course of my career where they’ve trusted me to make the right decision on my body when the power is in my hands. I’m trying to try my best to do that.”

Haliburton pledged that he would play if he could walk, and Carlisle said at his pregame news conference Thursday that his franchise guard had passed a “strength test” and would play under careful supervision without a specific minutes restriction. Haliburton said afterward that he would have “beat myself up” if he didn’t attempt to help his teammates.

“[Haliburton] did amazing,” said Pacers forward Obi Toppin, who scored a team-high 20 points. “He led us to a win, and he’s a soldier. He’s not going to let a little injury hold him back from playing in the Finals and helping this team win. He’s helped us get to this point, and he’s going to keep going until he can’t.”

The Thunder has no choice but to lick its wounds and return to Paycom Center, where it went a league-best 35-6 during the regular season and is 10-2 in the postseason. Oklahoma City’s two home losses during the playoffs both came in the closing seconds, with one coming courtesy of a Haliburton game-winning jumper in Game 1 of the Finals.

Despite its unnerving no-show in Game 6, the Thunder is 18-2 after a loss, including 6-0 during the playoffs. One of those six victories came in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Denver Nuggets, and two others came against the Pacers in Game 2 and Game 4 of the Finals.

“As disappointing as tonight was, we’re grateful for the opportunity,” Daigneault said. “We put in a lot of work this season to be able to play that game at home.”

Sunday’s stakes are clear as day: The heavily favored Thunder must conjure another bounce-back victory to claim its first championship, or the Pacers will cap their never-say-die postseason run with one last unexpected hurrah.

“One game,” Carlisle said. “This is what you dream about growing up. It’s a very difficult place to play — we know that. We’re playing the best team on the planet. They’ve proven that the entire year. We’ve got to play at such a high level to have a chance. This will be a monumental challenge.”

Pacers legends Reggie Miller, pictured, and Mark Jackson supported Indiana as it forced the first Game 7 in the NBA Finals since 2016. (Dylan Buell/Getty Images)