Lakers gear up for Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton in in-season tournament final،
LAS VEGAS — For the Los Angeles Lakers to win the first tournament title of the NBA season on Saturday, they will have to face a “gem” in Indiana Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton.
“He's athletic and shifty. He's got length and his vision is unbelievable,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said Friday when asked about Haliburton before the championship game. “I mean, the things he's able to do with the basketball, the way he sets up his teammates, watches defenders, the way he speeds up transitions, he's constantly in attack mode.”
Ham added: “I think they have a gem, man.”
Haliburton shined in Indiana's 128-119 semifinal victory over the Milwaukee Bucks, totaling 27 points, 15 assists and no turnovers. It was the third time this season that Haliburton, who leads the NBA in assists per game, scored at least 25 points while dishing out 15 or more assists without a turnover. No other player has had more than one such game in his career since turnovers started being tracked in 1977-78.
“He makes your life easier as a teammate playing alongside him,” said Lakers guard Austin Reaves, who teamed with Haliburton on Team USA during the FIBA World Cup in the Philippines this summer. “It's just the pace he plays with and his willingness to be so unselfish. He makes the right play most of the time. He doesn't really turn the ball over. He inspires confidence in you.
“Every time he throws the ball and you're open, he wants you to shoot it. It's not more about giving me an assist, it's him wanting you to succeed too.”
Haliburton, who turns 24 later this month, has Indiana in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, and he orchestrates a high-powered offense that leads the NBA in scoring with 128.4 points per game. Haliburton is averaging a career-high 26.9 points per game on 52.5% from the field and 44.1% from 3-point range and is one of eight Pacers players to average two numbers when it comes to scoring.
“Obviously their pace of play is second to none,” Reaves said. “They score a lot of points and are very capable of making quick runs just with the way they shoot the ball and the way they play. Being able to transition or not — honestly, they kind of do the whole transition, even if you make a shot, they take it out of the net very quickly.”
The Lakers rank 25th in fast break points allowed to their opponents, allowing 15.3 points per game. Indiana ranks second in fast break points scored per game, with 17.2.
Haliburton made the All-Star Game last season and his team is ready to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2020. This after being drafted by the Sacramento Kings with the No. 12 pick in 2020 and being traded at Indiana for his sophomore season.
“I think it just shows where you get drafted,” Lakers guard D'Angelo Russell, who was also a former lottery pick and was traded early in his career, said of Haliburton. “The system matters. Where he was drafted, he wasn't able to do it, and the change of scenery helped him and allowed him to become who he is. I'm a big fan of the system and the Where you’re drafted matters.”
The Lakers and Pacers approached the season's tournament as if it mattered to their teams, setting things up for an intriguing championship game on Saturday.
“We just have to be prepared for a little bit of everything, but we can't get caught up in trying to stop them and stop them from doing what they love to do,” Ham said. “We will, but we also can't forget to impose our will on the game. They have to guard us too.”
