Tyrese Haliburton is back in the spotlight, and the NBA is taking notice.
Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report included the Indiana Pacers guard among the league’s 10 most fascinating players to watch this season, a fitting label for a player returning after missing last season while recovering from the Achilles tendon injury he suffered in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Haliburton’s comeback already came with a built-in storyline. On October 7, 2026, he didn’t just return to the NBA - he did it at Iowa State, the place that helped shape his rise. The Pacers played the Minnesota Timberwolves there, with Haliburton buying tickets for the student section and the university also holding a lottery for people to attend.
His connection to Ames runs deep. Haliburton spent two seasons at Iowa State from 2018 to 2020 before going in the first round of the 2020 NBA Draft.
The school still matters to him in a personal way, too. He met his now wife, Jade, while at Iowa State, and he proposed to her on the Cyclones’ court when the two got engaged.
On the floor, the first game back looked exactly like what you’d expect from a star shaking off rust. In 16 minutes against Minnesota, Haliburton finished with seven points on 3-of-8 shooting, along with six assists, one steal and two blocks. It was his first NBA game since Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals.
“It’s the first game, but it’s got to slow down,” Haliburton said Wednesday night. “There was just a lot of adrenaline. I was hyped to be out there, excited, but I just got to slow down a little bit.”
He said he felt a little like a rookie again, but there was still one encouraging sign: his mind was keeping pace even if his body was moving too fast.
“It’ll happen with time,” Haliburton said. “The only way to really replicate that is game reps against other guys.
And that’s what that was. So really excited about it.
There’s a ton of improvement that there is to be made on my end and on our team's end, but just excited to be back on the floor.”
The Pacers have every reason to be thrilled to have him back. Haliburton was brilliant in 2024-25, averaging 18.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, 9.2 assists, 1.4 steals and 0.7 blocks per game while earning All-NBA Third Team honors.
Across his Pacers career, he’s putting up 19.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 10.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.6 blocks per game. Indiana also locked him up on a five-year, $244 million extension in July 2023.
His salary will climb to $48,924,624 this season, then $52,298,736 in 2027-28 and $55,672,848 in 2028-29, the final year of the deal.
Indiana’s projected starting five this season is Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam and Ivica Zubac, a group that looks strong on paper. The roster also picked up three new players this offseason: Larry Nance Jr., Kelly Oubre Jr. and Braden Smith.
The Pacers open the 2026-27 regular season on October 21 against the New Orleans Pelicans.
Haliburton’s resume already stacks up as one of the league’s most watchable. He’s averaging 17.5 points and 8.8 assists per game in the regular season and 17.9 points and 8.4 assists per game in the playoffs, and the basketball world is waiting to see Hali back in full form.
Indiana may have won Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals against the Thunder if Haliburton had stayed healthy, a brutal twist for the Pacers. But that’s behind them now, and the team believes it can make noise again in 2026-27.
If Haliburton stays healthy and looks like himself, Indiana is expected to pursue another extension next offseason. In a league where anything can happen - especially after the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers - all signs still point to Haliburton spending the rest of his NBA career with the Pacers.
In Other News...
Tyrese Haliburton Already Has Pacers Fans Worried About One Big Thing
Tyrese Haliburtons night off in Atlanta was enough to stir some unease around the Pacers, even if the bigger picture still looks calm. He sat out Indianas preseason game against the Hawks because of a tweaked ankle, another reminder of how closely this teams fortunes are tied to its star guard after his recovery from the Achilles tear he suffered in the 2024-25 NBA Finals.
For a team built around Haliburtons pace, passing and shot-making, even a minor setback tends to draw attention. The ankle issue is being described as minor, but it arrives at a time when every preseason note about his health carries extra weight for Indiana, and it leaves fans watching closely as the Pacers try to get through October with their most important player staying on track. [Read more 🡒]
Pacers Still Have The One Problem Fans Thought Was Fixed
The Pacers second preseason game offered a familiar sort of reminder, even in a tight 119-117 loss to the Hawks. Indiana came out with an early lead, then faded in the third quarter and never quite found its footing again, all while keeping the workload light and not playing anyone more than 20 minutes. For a team trying to use October to smooth out its edges, the result was less important than the way the game unfolded.
Even after bringing in Ivica Zubac to shore up the glass, the rebound battle still looked shaky against Atlanta. Indiana did plenty of things well enough to stay close, but the possession game told the louder story, and that is the part the Pacers cannot afford to ignore for long. Jarace Walker led Indiana with seven rebounds, a small bright spot in a loss that left one of last seasons lingering concerns still hanging around. [Read more 🡒]
Braden Smith Just Gave Pacers Fans A Tough Rookie Debate
A two-point preseason loss to Atlanta gave Pacers fans one of those early rookie moments that can linger longer than the final score. Braden Smith, the second-round pick trying to carve out a place in Indianas backcourt, found himself with the last shot after working downhill off a screen from Jalen Slawson, a possession that neatly captured both the trust he is already earning and the questions that still follow him.
Smiths appeal has always been tied to his competitiveness and willingness to take on big moments, but the preseason also offered a reminder of how hard it is to project second-round guards into real NBA rotation pieces. Indiana has plenty of reason to keep watching closely, because the Pacers need usable guard depth and developmental wins wherever they can find them, yet the gap between intriguing rookie and dependable pro can be a steep one to close. [Read more 🡒]