With roughly a month left in the regular season, the Indiana Pacers have had a good season overall. Despite their slow start to the year, when it looked like they were trending towards missing the playoffs, the Pacers are now 35-27 and own the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference. Furthermore, they are just 0.5 games behind the Milwaukee Bucks for the No. 4 seed. Landing this spot would give the Pacers home-court advantage for the first time since 2020.
After making the conference finals last season, the Pacers are in a good position to replicate their postseason success once again. While the Pacers have a young and deep team, most of their success has to do with starting point guard Tyrese Haliburton. Haliburton is the offensive engine for Indiana and is crucial to the team's success.
Like the team, Haliburton also had a slow start to the season and missed out on the All-Star team. However, he has turned things around, especially since the All-Star break. Regardless, despite returning to form, there is still a Haliburton problem that persists for Indiana, and it could be detrimental to their championship desires.
Tyrese Haliburton’s late-season injuries do not bode well for Pacers
For most of the regular season, Haliburton has not been hit by the injury bug. The Wisconsin native has only missed three games all season, but two of them have been the Pacers’ two most recent games. Additionally, he remains on the injury report with a hip injury. With the playoffs approaching, there is cause for concern regarding Haliburton’s injuries.
As Pacers fans know, Haliburton dealt with numerous injuries last season and missed the final two games of the Eastern Conference Finals against the eventual champion Boston Celtics. Given how well the Pacers were playing in the series (despite being down 0-2 before Haliburton’s absence), his injury was likely the death knell for the Pacers' shot at a championship last season.
The Pacers rely heavily on Haliburton, and rightfully so. He is one of the best point guards in the NBA and is crucial to the team's offensive success and identity. However, this strategy can often backfire, and when it does, it puts the Pacers in a bad spot.
Haliburton's status will be important for Pacers fans to keep an eye on from here on out. As they look to compete for a championship this season, Haliburton's presence is crucial. Hopefully for them, his late-season injuries do not become a bigger problem as they are also dealing with an injury to backup point guard T.J. McConnell.