Top 6 Tyrese Haliburton moments with Pacers for his 6th birthday

December 23, 2022: 43 points and game-winner vs Miami

If there's one thing you should know about Tyrese Haliburton, it's that he is a big-time clutch player who has never shied away from a crunch-time situation in his life. Fortunately, Pacers fans would get to know the clutch side of Haliburton very quickly, as it did not take him long to register his first game-winner in a Pacers uniform, which came as an early Christmas 2022 present.

Going into the December 23 matchup against the Heat, the Pacers were basically in the same standing as Miami, with both teams standing at .500 records at the time. For the Pacers, their 17-17 record was seen as a bit of an overachievement as they were expected to have one of the worst records in the league and compete for the number one pick in the 2023 draft, which did not end up happening.

On the flip side, Miami's 16-16 record was seen as an underachievement at the time, as they did not seem to capitalize off their Eastern Conference Finals run the season before. Of course, with the Pacers and Heat having animosity for each other for years, the squad would need a big night from Haliburton.

And boy, did he answer the call. Haliburton was nothing short of spectacular against Miami, scoring a then career-high 43 points on 14/20 shooting and 10/16 from beyond the arc while dishing out seven assists. That clutch gene also shone through, with 13 of Haliburton's points coming in the fourth quarter, including the shot heard around the world.

With less than ten seconds left and the game tied at 108, Haliburton sized up Tyler Herro, shook off his defender, and buried a deep three from just inside the Miami Heat logo to put the Pacers up three points and stun the Kaseya Center crowd for good. Indeed, this would be the dagger, as Herro's prayer to beat the buzzer was not answered, and the Pacers broke .500 yet again in another surprising win.

This game is still fondly remembered by most Pacers fans as the night Tyrese Haliburton officially 'arrived' in Indiana. After all, nothing screams 'Pacer' more than burying a game-winner against one of Indiana's most hated rivals. Haliburton made his mark on the Miami Heat that night and gave Pacers fans an early Christmas present they still have not forgotten.