Watching Tyrese Haliburton’s insane run this postseason was like watching a Disney movie in reverse. Usually, tragedy happens early on (think Bambi’s mom or Ellie from Up), then our protagonist overcomes it over the ensuing hour and a half journey. In Haliburton’s case, he ascended to an even higher plane with every round, then had everything taken from him when he was on the doorstep of becoming a champion.
Advertisement
Haliburton’s style of play has tied NBA analysts and experts in knots as they try to categorize him. Is he a superstar? Is he a top-10 player in the league? Nobody seems to know, yet nobody can stop talking about it either.
The Pacers point guard doesn’t fit the mold of a prototypical superstar. He doesn’t score 25+ points per game, and it’s rare that he puts a team on his back and single-handedly carries it to victory. Instead, he’s a team-first, pass-first player who makes everybody around him better.
In today’s NBA, the pass-first point guard is often considered a dinosaur. Everyone these days is expected to be able to score first and foremost, but Haliburton, who finished third in the league in assists and 41st in scoring, bucks the trend.
During an appearance on Club 520 podcast this week, Tracy McGrady took note of Haliburton’s performances and compared him to the greatest point guard of all time. “When I look at Magic Johnson play basketball, I see Tyrese a little bit … Dominant right-hand player, you don’t really see [Magic] do too much on the left side of his body. Tyrese is the same way,” he asserted.
Being mentioned in the same breath as Magic Johnson is the highest compliment a point guard can receive, but McGrady believes that Hali still has room to grow to fully get to that level. “For Tyrese to be great, if you’re gonna have four points, dammit, you gotta accumulate for your team at least 40 points.”
“If you wanna be a superstar, I’m fine with four points, but give me 15 assists, give me eight rebounds,” McGrady continued. “That right there to me is like a Jason Kidd, that’s a [Magic Johnson]. That’s having an imprint and you don’t have to score that much,” he added.
Haliburton, despite being great in these playoffs, hasn’t always been consistent, and rectifying that would be the next step for him to truly be mentioned among the greats.
Unfortunately, Hali now faces a long road to recovery after tearing his Achilles in the first quarter of Game 7 of the Finals. He had been playing through a calf strain when the injury occurred, but as devastating as it was, Hali claims if he had to do it all over again, he would.
Haliburton’s love for his city and his teammates should be factored into the superstar conversation, just like it is with someone like Steph Curry or Giannis Antetokounmpo. At the end of the day, whether you want to classify him as a superstar or not is irrelevant.
What matters is that he’s a winner who is beloved by the fans and his teammates, and respected by his opponents. Here’s hoping he returns to full health and makes another run at it.
