The worst fears for the Indiana Pacers have come true.
Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton suffered a torn right Achilles tendon in the first quarter of Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the team announced on Monday, June 23. It said surgery was scheduled for later in the day at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.
ESPN was first to report the extent of Haliburton ‘s injury.
That means the Pacers must now prepare to be without Haliburton for an extended period of time, possibly even the entire 2025-26 season.
This season, Haliburton averaged 18.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 9.2 assists – third-most in the NBA. He also led the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (5.61).
He generated one of the most clutch stretches of play in postseason history, hitting a game-winning or game-tying shot in each of Indiana’s four postseason series.
All of which now complicates Indiana’s quest to return to the NBA Finals.
It became apparent immediately after Haliburton sustained the injury that it could be serious. It was a non-contact injury, and after Haliburton fell to the court, his emotional reaction – Haliburton slapped the floor and appeared to shake his head and repeatedly shout ‘no’ – hinted at its severity.
Haliburton scored nine points in just 7:05 of play prior to his injury.
After getting medical attention for several moments, staffers helped Haliburton off the floor, with him not putting any weight on the injured leg. He went into the locker room with a towel draped over his head.
After the game, as players headed back into the Pacers locker room, Haliburton stood outside the room on crutches, greeting his teammates.
‘That’s who he is as a person, a teammate,’ backup point guard T.J. McConnell said after the game. ‘He put his ego aside constantly. He could have been in the locker room feeling sorry for himself after something like that happened, but he wasn’t. He was up greeting us. A lot of us were hurting from the loss and he was up there consoling us. That’s who Tyrese Haliburton is. He’s just the greatest, man.’
Haliburton had been dealing with a right calf strain that he sustained during Game 5, Monday, June 16. He had been listed as questionable heading into each of Games 6 and 7, but he managed to start each.
(This story has been updated with new information.)