This past year has been an incredible one for Tyrese Haliburton on the court. The Wisconsin native led the NBA assists last season, earned his first-career All-NBA Third Team nod, won an Olympic gold medal with Team USA, and led the Indiana Pacers to their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 2014.
Since getting traded to the team in 2022, Haliburton has done nothing but improve and exceed all expectations in Indiana. At 24 years old, Haliburton is one of the best young stars in the NBA and should only continue to get better from here on out. This is arguably the most exciting aspect of the team for Pacers fans right now.
There is a lot of promise in Indiana. They have a young team with an elite offense. Additionally, the Pacers are simply just a fun team to watch as well. They may already be serious title contenders, and the fact that they have likely not hit their peak yet is exciting. The Pacers are in a great position to succeed now and in the future, and most of that has to do with Haliburton's presence.
Fortunately for Haliburton, despite constantly being met with doubters, he is receiving his well-deserved recognition from many NBA fans and the media. And this is a trend that will continue according to a recent Bleacher Report article.
Bleacher Report believes Tyrese Haliburton will be the Indiana Pacers' best player in 2027
Bleacher Report's Andy Bailey wrote about who he believes each NBA team's best player in three years will be. For the Pacers, Bailey gave the nod to Haliburton, who will be 27 years old and possibly just entering his peak at that point.
In the article, Bailey also suggested that Bennedict Mathurin, Pascal Siakam, and Andrew Nembhard were other Pacers players who at least deserved a mention. However, Bailey made it clear that Haliburton is the top choice by far.
It is hard to disagree with Bailey's take. Haliburton is already the best player on the team and has the highest ceiling. While there are other players on the team who could become potential All-Stars in a few years, it seems extremely unlikely that any of them will overtake Haliburton as the Pacers' best player in 2027.
Additionally, the only other plausible for Haliburton to not be the team's best player in three years is if they make a blockbuster trade for a star in the future. However, based on how the Pacers have conducted their team in recent years, in addition to them already being potential title contenders, this seems unlikely.
The Pacers have a star in Haliburton, and it seems that both sides are happy with where they stand. Last year, the two sides agreed to a five-year, $244.6 million contract extension that will keep him locked up until 2029.
Right now, Haliburton is considered one of the best up-and-coming stars in the NBA. However, in a few years, he will probably find himself in MVP discussions as one of the top stars in the league, period.