3 Positives, 1 negative from Pacers thrilling last-minute win vs. Bucks

Positive: Tyrese Haliburton takes over yet again

Tyrese Haliburton has gotten the scoring bug as of late, and that spells trouble for any team facing the Pacers. After being labeled as passive at times in previous years, Haliburton has come out of the gates this year much more aggressive scoring the ball, and that includes his performance tonight.

Haliburton led the team in scoring with 29 points and still dished out 10 assists as well. This performance was his fifth 25/10 game with at least five three-pointers made, while the rest of the Pacers franchise just has four.

While his performance was great throughout, Haliburton still saved his best for last, scoring 10 points in the fourth quarter on 4/5 shooting and making two three-pointers, one of which gave the Pacers the lead for good near the end of the game, adding on to Haliburton's already extensive list of clutch shots hit in a Pacers uniform this early.

This performance has to come as a welcome change for Haliburton, who only scored 16 points in Wednesday's win over the Jazz, including a scoreless first half. For me, what stands out with Haliburton's scoring is more than just his career-high 23.6 points per game.

What stands out to me is how quickly he can take over a game with his scoring. Coming into the league as a primary playmaker who can score when called upon, Haliburton has transformed into a fantastic number-one option for a potential playoff team that can put games away by himself.

A lot of primary playmakers don't have the ability to take over a game with their scoring, but Tyrese Haliburton is clearly not one of them.

In fact, if Haliburton really wanted to flex his scoring muscle, I believe it would be very possible for him to average 25 points this season while still maintaining 10+ assists. After all, this is the same guy who scored 43 points not too long ago to almost single-handedly carry the Pacers to a win against Charlotte, a game which they ultimately lost and one where fumbled the ball on the last possession. However, it seems like Haliburton has redeemed himself for that mistake, as he wasted no time putting the game away against Milwaukee.