INDIANAPOLIS (AP) 鈥� Tyrese Haliburton jumped into the passing lane for a steal and tiptoed his way along the sideline before spinning and for a dunk over a pair of Oklahoma City defenders.
And then he stopped to slap a few hands of well-wishers in the crowd.
Not bad for a guy playing on one good leg.
Haliburton's Game 6 of the NBA Finals ended early 鈥� and that was a very good thing for the Indiana Pacers. Playing with a strained right calf, Haliburton had 14 points in just 23 minutes and the Pacers on Thursday night to send the NBA Finals to Game 7.
鈥淚f I can walk, then I want to be out there,鈥� Haliburton said.
Haliburton has been dealing with lower leg issues throughout the series and the calf strain flared up in Game 5 on Monday night. He played through it for the final three quarters of that loss to the Thunder, though he basically stopped looking to shoot in the second half.
He missed his first four shots on Thursday, too. And then, he somehow got back to normal. Jumping, cutting, shooting from 30 feet and twisting in the air at times, he looked nothing like the guy who left Game 5 limping so badly that it seemed like he was dragging his right leg behind him.
The fact that he played at all was a boost to the Pacers. Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said Haliburton went through a walkthrough Thursday afternoon along with strength testing, passing all necessary checks.
So, with the Pacers facing elimination in Game 6 and down 3-2 in the title series, Haliburton 鈥� who was on the court and did some shooting not long before Carlisle announced the decision 鈥� gave it a shot.
鈥淗e didn鈥檛 want a lot of attention. He was doing everything possible to be able to play,鈥� Carlisle said. 鈥淔ortunately, we were able to keep his minutes reasonable because we had a great first half and a good start to the third quarter.鈥�
That Haliburton played was no surprise to the Thunder.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a great player,鈥� Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said before the game. 鈥淚f there鈥檚 one thing we know, you don鈥檛 underestimate great players. In this situation, we鈥檙e expecting his best punch. Indiana is a great team. We鈥檙e expecting their best punch. I have no doubt he鈥檚 dealing with stuff, but we鈥檙e expecting him to come out and play like a great player would play."
Daigneault, to his dismay, couldn't have been more right.
Haliburton acknowledged Wednesday that, if this was the regular season, he likely wouldn鈥檛 be attempting to play through such an injury. He said he wanted to understand the risks, but indicated if there was any way to play he would do so.
鈥淚 knew he would," Pacers forward Pascal Siakam said.
Haliburton missed the last two games of last season鈥檚 playoff run because of a hamstring injury, unable to play in Games 3 and 4 of the Eastern Conference finals against the eventual champion Boston Celtics. The Pacers lost by three points in each of those two games without Haliburton, who went on to be part of the team that won a gold medal for the United States at the Paris Olympics later that year.
Among the many forms of treatment Haliburton has been partaking in since Monday night: hyperbaric treatments, needles, massage, electronic stimulation, even special tape. He鈥檚 been doing something virtually around the clock with hopes of being able to play.
鈥淚 have a lot of trust in our medical staff. I have a lot of trust in our organization to make the right decision,鈥� Haliburton said Wednesday. 鈥淚 think there鈥檚 been many situations through the course of my career where they鈥檝e trusted me on my body. ... I want to be out there. That鈥檚 the plan.鈥�
Good plan.
Haliburton has come up big for the Pacers in big moments several times in these playoffs.
left in Game 1 of the finals immediately went into title-series lore and gave the over the heavily favored Thunder.
Against Milwaukee on April 29, that capped a rally from seven points down in the final 34.6 seconds of overtime for a 119-118 win. In Cleveland on May 6, for a 120-119 win 鈥� capping a rally from seven points down in the final 48 seconds. At Madison Square Garden against the Knicks on May 21, a game the Pacers trailed 121-112 with 51.1 seconds left, to force OT and Indiana won again.
He didn't need any late dramatics Thursday. And now, Game 7 awaits.
鈥淲e've got one game ... and it's all about that one game,鈥� Haliburton said.
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AP NBA:
Tim Reynolds, The Associated Press
