Tyrese Haliburton is back, healthy, and ready to start writing the next chapter of his career. But the Indiana Pacers star made it clear he’s not thrilled with the way the NBA has chosen to present the moment.
On the Numbers on the Board podcast, Haliburton said he was stunned that Indiana’s 2026-27 opener against the New Orleans Pelicans will not be nationally televised and won’t even be played in Indianapolis.
“Name any other person that you compare to my level of a basketball player, wherever you have any ranks, if they tore their Achilles and missed 16 months, do you think that game would be on national television? Do you think that game would be at home if not on national television? Do you think that game would be in New Orleans?”
“Trey Murphy, love my boy Trey. I love New Orleans, but I was shocked to see that. But we move on.”
The Pacers are set to begin the season on October 21 in New Orleans, so Haliburton’s long-awaited return will happen away from the home crowd that watched him help guide Indiana to the 2025 NBA Finals.
That’s a big part of why the decision landed the way it did for him. Haliburton’s last game before the injury came on the league’s biggest stage, when Indiana pushed Oklahoma City to Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals before he suffered the Achilles injury that wiped out the entire next season.
Indiana felt the effects immediately. Without its franchise point guard, the Pacers dropped to 19-63.
Now Haliburton is healthy again, but the league didn’t turn his comeback into a showcase game. Instead, the Pacers will open on the road with no national TV spotlight attached.
The reaction also fits into a bigger pattern around Haliburton’s career. He has spent a lot of time battling perceptions about where he ranks among the NBA’s best guards, including the infamous anonymous player poll that labeled him the league’s most overrated player before he answered by helping the Pacers reach the Finals.
Indiana has worn the underdog label for years, and the 2025 playoff run was supposed to change that. Haliburton delivered clutch performance after clutch performance and came within one win of bringing the Pacers their first NBA championship before going down early in the first quarter.
That’s what makes this opener feel bigger than a standard start to the season. Indiana does have 11 nationally televised games this year, up from only five last season, which shows the league expects the Pacers to matter again.
But Haliburton’s actual return didn’t make the cut. Maybe there are practical reasons for the scheduling choice.
From his point of view, though, the message is tough to miss. And after 16 months away, he doesn’t sound eager to forget it.
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