Age: 23
Years Pro: 3
Status: Entering fourth year of rookie contract and eligible to sign extension this summer
Key Stats: Averaged 20.7 points, 10.4 assists, 3.7 rebounds, and 1.6 steals over 56 games. Shot 49 percent from the field, 40 percent from 3-point range, and 87.1 percent from the free throw line.
Tyrese Haliburton's first full season in Indiana couldn't have gone much better. Yes, he would have liked to miss less games and for the Pacers to be taking part in the playoffs right now instead of watching from home, but there's no doubt that the 2022-23 campaign was remarkably successful for the third-year guard from Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
Haliburton firmly established himself as one of the NBA's brightest young stars, putting together arguably the best season by a Pacers point guard in franchise history.
He led Indiana in scoring, assists, and steals on his way to his first career All-Star selection.
He finished the season second in the NBA to James Harden in assists per game with 10.4, shattering the previous Pacers record of 8.7, set by Mark Jackson in 1997-98.
He became the first player in franchise history and the 15th ever to average 20 points and 10 assists over a season. The others on that list? Oscar Robertson, Russell Westbrook, Harden, Isiah Thomas, Kevin Johnson, Magic Johnson, Tim Hardaway, Chris Paul, Michael Adams, Tiny Archibald, LeBron James, John Wall, Deron Williams, and Trae Young.
And he was the first player in league history to average 20 and 10 while shooting 40 percent from 3-point range.
Offensively, Haliburton is a savant. He pushes the pace and seemingly always makes the right play -- whether that's finding an open teammate or looking to score. In his postseason press conference last week, Pacers President of Basketball Operations likened Haliburton to Patrick Mahomes with how he is able to read the defense. Just go back and listen to his breakdown of everything that went through his mind when he found rookie Andrew Nembhard for a buzzer-beating three to beat the Lakers in November.
He doesn't shy away from the moment, either. Haliburton had his hand in all of Indiana's most dramatic victories, from setting up Nembhard's game-winner, to draining last-second threes to secure road wins in Miami and Chicago.
With Haliburton running the point, the Pacers established a clear offensive identity this season: they want to get out and run, shoot a lot of threes, and put up a ton of points. And Haliburton was so good that that often was a winning formula.
Through the first half of the season, Indiana was able to take the league by storm. On Jan. 10, the Pacers were 23-18 and in sixth place in the East.
The next night in New York, Haliburton injured his elbow and knee in a loss to the Knicks. Those injuries would keep him sidelined for the next three weeks. Without their All-Star, the Blue & Gold dropped 10 of their next 11 games.
On the season, the Pacers were 28-28 when Haliburton in the lineup and 7-19 without him, a clear delineation of his value. Had he and the Pacers been a little luckier on the injury front, the Blue & Gold could very well be in the throes of a first-round playoff series right now.
There's no questioning Haliburton's value on the court, but his impact stretches far beyond his statistical contributions. The 23-year-old has already had a huge impact on creating a new culture in Indiana with his attitude and leadership.
Haliburton possesses an infectious positive energy. You can see it on the court with the way he jumps up and down like a a little kid after sinking a big shot, or even when he wasn't playing the last several games of the season, the way he would always be first off the bench to celebrate a big dunk by a teammate.
In the locker room, Haliburton has developed deep relationships with all of his teammates, earning praise from both Pritchard and head coach Rick Carlisle for his gifts as a "connector."
"I’ve never been around a more complete, empathetic, understanding of what the real world is, loving, taking care of the small people, truly committed to community leader like him," Pritchard said. "I’ve never seen it. I’ve never seen a connector like Tyrese ever. Like ever. He connects with our balls boys, he connects with the president or the CEO of some company. He just has this ability to make people feel comfortable around him."
Already an All-Star and the face of a franchise after just three NBA seasons, Haliburton has big plans for the future. He wants to guide Indiana back to the postseason, and sooner rather than later.
The Pacers, of course, have plans of their own for Haliburton. He is entering the fourth year of his rookie contract, meaning he's eligible to sign an extension this summer. Pritchard expressed confidence in getting an extension done, insisting that "Tyrese is our guy."
While there will surely come a time to sit down with the front office for contract talks, Haliburton's mind is on the weight room this summer. As good as he is offensively, Haliburton (like most of the Pacers) has plenty of room to grow defensively. Specifically, he would like to improve as an on-ball defender, which means he needs to get stronger and try to add a little more muscle to his slender frame.
In addition to helping on the defensive end, adding a little bulk would allow Haliburton to better withstand hits on the offensive end and hopefully help him stay on the court for more games next season. Haliburton said in his end-of-season press conference that he had already spoken with the Pacers' strength and conditioning staff and put together "a pretty good plan" for the weight room this summer.
With all that he was able to accomplish over the past year, it's hard to believe that Haliburton is just 23 years old. It's still far too early to speculate about a player so early into their NBA career, but if Haliburton continues along his current trajectory, he certainly has a chance to end up as one of the greatest players to ever wear an Indiana Pacers uniform.
Tyrese Haliburton 2023 Exit Interview
2023 Pacers.com Player Review Schedule
April 17: Tyrese Haliburton
April 18: Myles Turner
April 19: Andrew Nembhard
April 20: Jordan Nwora
April 21: Aaron Nesmith
April 22: Isaiah Jackson
April 23: James Johnson
April 24: Bennedict Mathurin
April 25: T.J. McConnell
April 26: Oshae Brissett
April 27: Chris Duarte
April 28: Jalen Smith
April 29: Gabe York
April 30: Kendall Brown
May 1: George Hill
May 2: Daniel Theis
May 3: Buddy Hield