In many ways, NBA All-Star 2024 was Tyrese Haliburton's weekend. The 23-year-old was starting the All-Star Game for the first time in his home city, while also competing in two events during All-Star Saturday Night. Add in all his appearances and obligations and Haliburton's fellow All-Stars affectionately nicknamed him the "prom king" of the weekend.
Expectations were high for Haliburton on Sunday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The Pacers star did not disappoint, providing the highlight of the night by making five consecutive 3-pointers in the first quarter.
He finished the night with 32 points, seven rebounds, and six assists, going 11-for-15 from the field and 10-for-14 from 3-point range in the East's 211-186 victory.
Haliburton had a strong case to be the first player in franchise history to be named All-Star Game MVP, but that honor went instead to Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard, who scored a team-high 39 points, going 11-for-23 from beyond the arc.
Lillard's 11 threes were the second-most ever in an All-Star Game, trailing only Stephen Curry's 16 3-pointers in 2022 in Cleveland. Haliburton's 10 treys are tied for the third-most ever with Jayson Tatum, who made 10 triples en route to a record 55 points last year in Utah. Haliburton broke Paul George's franchise record of nine 3-pointers made from George's 41-point performance in 2016 in Toronto.
The East set a new scoring record for the All-Star Game, becoming the first team ever to eclipse the 200-point mark.
Haliburton got the first All-Star Game in Indianapolis in 39 years off to a memorable start.
He took his first shot at 9:58, knocking down a three from the left corner off a kick out from Bam Adebayo. He ran to the same spot the next trip down the floor, catching a pass from Lillard and draining a trey despite a bump from Nikola Jokic at 9:27.
Haliburton brought the ball up the court the next possession. He pulled up on the left wing and got Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to bite on a pump fake before swishing a third straight triple at 9:05.
By that point, the crowd was buzzing and it was clear that Haliburton would shoot until he missed. He got to the left corner again on the next possession, where he hit a step-back three over LeBron James at 8:26. He went into heat-check mode at that point, draining a 35-footer from the NBA logo near center court at 8:26, his fifth 3-pointer in 1:32.
He took a 34-footer on the next possession and finally missed, receiving another round of cheers after a hot streak that even had one of the greatest shooters of all time in Reggie Miller in disbelief on the TNT broadcast.
"Are you kidding me right now?" Miller exclaimed after Haliburton's fifth three. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW?"
The Pacers' All-Star guard checked back in for the final 5:44 with the East still in front, 82-67. He didn't attempt a shot for a few minutes, but eventually got an open look in the right corner after Jaylen Brown tapped an offensive rebound in his direction. Haliburton didn't hesitate, quickly knocking down a three from in front of the East bench.
The East headed into halftime up 104-89 with Haliburton registering 18 points on 6-of-7 3-point shooting, three rebounds, and three assists. Only Lillard (22 points on 8-of-13 shooting, 6-of-11 from three) had more points at the break.
Haliburton stayed hot after halftime. He hit his seventh three from the right wing with 9:31 remaining in the third quarter, then spotted up in the corner for his eighth at 7:55. He also amassed four more rebounds and two more assists in his first shift of the second half, which ended with 3:41 remaining in the third quarter and the East up 140-119.
The East led 160-136 after three quarters. The West never threatened to make it a real game in the final frame, but Haliburton checked back in for the final 4:37 and thrilled the crowd with one last flourish in the closing seconds.
He hit a 29-foot shot from the left wing with 1:27 remaining for his ninth 3-pointer of the night and got the East to 200 points. His 10th three came 13 seconds later, when he pulled up from 28 feet.
The next time down the floor, Haliburton opted out of attempting another three, instead driving down a wide-open lane and throwing down an exclamation-point dunk.
That got Haliburton within one point of Lillard, but Lillard hit two threes over the final 35 seconds, including a halfcourt shot to cap the scoring.
Lillard was named the MVP to boos from the home crowd, who wanted to see their All-Star take home the honor. Still, it was a highly successful weekend for the Blue & Gold, with Bennedict Mathurin winning MVP in Friday's Rising Stars event and Haliburton, Mathurin, and Myles Turner capturing the Skills Challenge title on Saturday night.
"There was a lot of energy tonight, energy from Pacers fans," Haliburton said. "A lot for us to be excited about. We saw it with Benn starting off with Rising Stars MVP, the Skills Challenge yesterday.
"There's just been a lot of love and excitement through not only our city, but our organization. We just want to carry that momentum into the second half of the season and make a playoff push."
Haliburton now has two All-Star Games in the books and likely many more ahead in his career. He was just three years old when LeBron James — who took part in his 20th All-Star Game on Sunday — made his All-Star debut in 2004. Even as recently as four years ago, he was a relatively anonymous kid from Oshkosh, Wis., his sophomore season at Iowa State derailed by a broken wrist.
On Sunday, he was Indianapolis' favorite son, putting on a show reminscent of Miller in front of his adoring fans in the house that Reggie built.
"Never thought I'd have the success that I'm having," Haliburton said. "So (to) just sit back and reflect, it's really special. I don't take this life for granted. This is a dream come true for me."