Tyrese Haliburton is on track to be back in the Indiana Pacers’ lineup next season, and one NBA analyst is already wondering whether he can get back to the level that made him one of the league’s most dangerous guards.
In Bleacher Report’s “1 Major Question for Every Team After 2026 NBA Offseason,” Greg Swartz framed Indiana’s situation around a simple but loaded idea: “Will Tyrese Haliburton return to his former self?”
That question comes after Haliburton missed all of last season while recovering from an Achilles tear. Before the injury, he was coming off a strong 2024-25 run for the Pacers, putting up 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 time in Indiana, Haliburton has averaged 19.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 10.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.6 blocks per game. The Pacers locked him in with a five-year, $244 million extension in July 2023, and his contract is set to pay him $48,924,624 next season, followed by $52,298,736 in 2027-28 and $55,672,848 in 2028-29.
There’s plenty of optimism around his return, and Haliburton’s father, John, believes the Pacers are headed back toward the top.
“I expect them right at the top,” John told Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson. “I'm not going to lie to you.
If you know basketball and you've been paying attention, you know that all of our rookies and second-year players got a chance to really go out there and grow through this run. They got a chance to experience the game at the highest level, slow it down, and understand exactly what it takes to win.
“Now, by the time Tyrese gets back on the floor, these young guys have already been through the fire. So you tell me-what is going to stop them from going to the top?
New York won the championship this year, but they won it because Indiana wasn't fully standing in their way at the very end. Next year, with Tyrese back, Indiana will be standing right there.”
Haliburton’s résumé still carries plenty of weight. He owns career regular-season averages of 17.5 points and 8.8 assists per game, along with 17.9 points and 8.4 assists per game in the playoffs. He also led the Pacers to the 2025 NBA Finals.
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