Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton reportedly suffered a devastating Achilles injury during the team’s NBA Finals Game 7 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday.
Haliburton tore his Achilles tendon in his slip in the first quarter and will likely miss the entirety of the 2025-26 season, ESPN reported on Monday. The Pacers guard was the third player to suffer the devastating injury, with Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum and Milwaukee Bucks star Damian Lillard also dealing with torn Achilles tendons during the playoffs.
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The Pacers announced after Haliburton left the game that he wouldn’t return due to a lower right-leg injury. Haliburton’s father, John, told ESPN’s Lisa Salters that it was an Achilles injury.
“He will be back,” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said after the 103-91 loss. “I don’t have any medical information about what’s what, what may or may not have happened. But he’ll be back in time, and I believe he’ll make a full recovery.”
Haliburton started to heat up for Indiana early in the game. He scored nine points on three 3-pointers and was about to drive past NBA Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander when he fell to the ground.
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It appeared Haliburton knew how devastating the injury would be as he pounded his fist onto the floor in frustration. He was already dealing with a calf injury before the game.
Haliburton emerged as one of the top stars in the playoffs through his clutch shooting.
“A lot of us were hurting from the loss, and he was up there consoling us. That’s who Tyrese Haliburton is,” Pacers guard T.J. McConnell said. “He’s just the greatest.”
Indiana will have a few offseason decisions to make regarding the look of its roster and whether they will decide to go for another championship run in 2025-26.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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