Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton after surgery to repair torn Achilles tendon: 'I don't regret it'
Tyrese Haliburton has no regrets about trying to lead the Indiana Pacers to the franchise's first NBA title, even though his decision to play hurt ended in agony when he tore his right Achilles tendon early in Game 7.
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Monday's announcement of the injury — confirmed by Haliburton in a social media post — casts a pall on Haliburton's historic postseason run, which included a litany of incredible plays, buzzer-beating winners and occasionally unprecedented stat lines.
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'Honestly, right now, torn Achilles and all, I don't regret it,' Haliburton, who played Games 6 and 7 of the finals with a strained calf, said on social media. 'I'd do it again, and again after that, to fight for this city and my brothers. For the chance to do something special.'
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It was just the second finals appearance for the Pacers, and it came as a surprise given that Indiana began the season with a 10-15 record. Getting back there might take some time now that the two-time All Star point guard could miss all of next season.
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Haliburton's surgery to repair the tendon was performed Monday by Dr. Martin O'Malley at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, the Pacers said.
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Coach Rick Carlisle believes that when Haliburton heals he will be every bit as good — whenever that may be.
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'He will be back,' Carlisle said following Sunday night's 103-91 loss at Oklahoma City. 'I don't have any medical information about what's what, what may or may not have happened. But he'll be back in time, and I believe he'll make a full recovery.'
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The Pacers wouldn't have made it so far without Haliburton helping to orchestrate three incredible playoff rallies from seven points down in the final 50 seconds of regulation.
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But after scoring nine points, all on 3-pointers, in the first seven minutes of the biggest game in franchise history, Haliburton crashed to the floor and that was it.
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The Pacers lost their leader and fell short in their title chase — again.
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'We just kept battling because we wanted to make Indiana proud, make our fans proud,' three-time All-Star Pascal Siakam said. 'We tried our best, but we've got to be strong. It's hard to look forward into the future after you lose like this.'
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But everyone else is, and the questions about Haliburton's playing status could make this offseason murkier than expected for Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard.
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