Long before Tyrese Haliburton was putting up double-double’s on an almost nightly basis for the Kings, he was dishing out dimes and dropping buckets for Oshkosh North High School in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
Haliburton returned to his hometown this past weekend to have his jersey retired by his beloved high school before the Kings took on the Bucks on Saturday.
Joined by family, friends and current and former teammates, Haliburton entered Oshkosh North immortality as he not only had just his No. 14 jersey hung in the rafters but was also inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame.
“Before there were any aspirations of being a professional, or in college, I just wanted to win a state championship, so it means a lot that I’m being recognized as an athlete here,” Haliburton told the media before the ceremony.
Haliburton, a three-year starter at Oshkosh North, won back-to-back Fox Valley Association Player of the Year awards for his junior and senior seasons and helped the school earn their first boys basketball state title in school history.
As a senior, he averaged 22.9 points per game, 6.2 assists and 3.1 steals en route to being named Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year and USA Today All-USA Wisconsin first team.
Haliburton carried the momentum from his jersey retirement onto the court on Saturday as he put up 24 points and 12 assists in front of the hometown crowd for his 12th double-double of the season.
“It’s always fun to be home. It’s obviously been a special weekend for me,” Haliburton said after Saturday’s game against the Bucks. “So, to be able to go home yesterday, see so many friends and family cheering, made the game tonight kind of feel like a home game for myself, so it always feels good to be at home. I’ve dreamt of playing the NBA and being able to do that close to home is special.”
Haliburton has quickly established himself as one of the NBA’s most impressive young guards during his first two years in the league. The 21-year-old attributes his success to always following his dreams and staying laser focused on accomplishing his goals.
"This environment in which to succeed and to move on as an athlete and as a person and achieve heights that I can only dream of," Haliburton said during the ceremony. "I hope that all the kids and the generation that is to come after me can see the environment that I’ve created by chasing my dream and achieving something that has never been done before and I hope that inspires people to chase their dreams and to do things that they say you can’t do.”