Tyrese Haliburton may be making good progress in his recovery from an Achilles tear he suffered in Game 7 of last year's NBA Finals, but he is not ready to come back just yet. And he knows that better than anybody.
In a recent episode of the "Mind the Game" podcast, the Indiana Pacers star told LeBron James about where he stands in his recovery. Haliburton admitted that there are times when he feels like he could play in an NBA game today, but Bennedict Mathurin was quick to send him a big message that he isn't ready yet.
"It's been funny because as I've started to play with the interns and Jannero Pargo being one of our player development guys, I'm playing with these guys, and I feel so nice. I'm like, 'Oh, I could play in an NBA game right now,'" Haliburton said. "And then the other day, we had the low-minute guys come in and play with us. So we had our two-ways, Ethan Thompson, Kam Jones, Bennedict Mathurin, he's getting back from injury. So I'm guarding Benn."
"First play, he comes down. Hesi. Shoots a three. And they're like 'Go at him,' and he's like, 'Ah, his leg,' and I'm like, 'Hey bruh, I'm fine. Attack me like normal. I gotta see where I'm at.' He hesi'd me one time. He was at the rim. I'm still at the three-point line. ... I still gotta give myself some grace, [and] understand it's gonna take some time."
The Pacers can't wait for Tyrese Haliburton's return
Haliburton's injury was devastating for so many reasons. It happened early in Game 7 of the NBA Finals (which many believe Indiana would've won had he not gone down with the injury), and it also completely changed the team's immediate outlook.
The Pacers made it to the conference finals in each of the last two seasons and the NBA Finals last year. This was their most successful two-way stretch in years, and there were reasons to believe they would've been able to make some noise again this season prior to Haliburton's injury.
With their star guard out for the season, everybody knew the Pacers would take a step back. But it's been even worse than anybody could have anticipated.
Over halfway through the season, they are 12-36 and own the third-worst record in the NBA. A lot of crazier things have happened, but it would take a miracle for Indiana to even sniff the postseason this year, let alone go on another deep playoff run. At this point, there is a better chance of the team winning the draft lottery than playing in May (which might not be a bad thing anyway).
Despite the lost year, the future is still bright in Indiana. And once Haliburton finally makes his return, the team should be in a good position to re-enter the title picture and prove that they are legitimate contenders once again.
Even so, it's still very strange not to see the Wisconsin native on the court, and the Pacers clearly miss having him out there.