Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton gets candid on devastating injury: 'The frustration is unfathomable'
Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton made a candid social media post reflecting on the team’s NBA Finals loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder and the torn Achilles he suffered in Game 7.
Haliburton made a late-night post on X with a lengthy statement and a photo of himself in a hospital bed. It came more than 24 hours after he was seen writhing in pain on the floor at the Paycom Center.
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"Man. Don’t know how to explain it other than shock. Words cannot express the pain of this letdown. The frustration is unfathomable. I’ve worked my whole life to get to this moment and this is how it ends? Makes no sense," he wrote.
"Now that I’ve gotten surgery, I wish I could count the number of times people will tell me I’m going to ‘come back stronger’. What a cliche lol, this s--- sucks. My foot feels like dead weight fam. But what’s hurting most I think is my mind. Feel like I’m rambling, but I know this is something I’ll look back on when I’m through this, as something I’m proud I fought through. It feels good to let this s--- out without y’all seeing the kid ugly cry.
"At 25, I’ve already learned that God never gives us more than we can handle. I know I’ll come out on the other side of this a better man and a better player. And honestly, right now, torn Achilles and all, I don’t regret it. I’d do it again, and again after that, to fight for this city and my brothers. For the chance to do something special."
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Haliburton apologized to the city of Indianapolis for letting fans down, though he did nothing of the sort.
He delivered one of the most epic playoff performances in recent memory as he broke the hearts of fans in Milwaukee, Cleveland and New York on his way to the NBA Finals. He nearly did it in Oklahoma City if it was not for a calf strain that hampered him as well as the torn Achilles.
"Indy, I’m sorry. If any fan base doesn’t deserve this, it’s y’all. But together we are going to fight like hell to get back to this very spot, and get over this hurdle," he added. "I don’t doubt for a second that y’all have my back, and I hope you guys know that I have yours. I think Kobe said it best when in this same situation. There are far greater issues/challenges in the world then a torn achilles. Stop feeling sorry for yourself, find the silver lining and get to work with the same belief, same drive and same conviction as ever." And that’s exactly right. I will do everything in my power to get back right.
"My journey to get to where I am today wasn’t by happenstance, I’ve pushed myself every day to be great. And I will continue to do just that. The most important part of this all, is that I’m grateful. I’m grateful for every single experience that’s led me here. I’m grateful for all the love from the hoop world. I don’t ‘have to’ go through this, I get to go through this. I’m grateful for the road that lies ahead. Watch how I come back from this. So, give me some time, I’ll dust myself off and get right back to being the best version of Tyrese Haliburton."
Haliburton is reportedly likely to miss the 2025-26 season as well.
He averaged 18.6 points and 9.2 assists per game for the Pacers in 2024-25.
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