What should have been a thrilling NBA Finals Game 7 transformed into an emotional, tragic affair on Sunday night after Indiana Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton went down with what was later deemed to an Achilles tear early in the contest.
The team leader played just seven minutes and put up nine points before falling to the hardwood in total agony. He had been dealing with a calf injury in the lead-up to the game, but had elected to play through it once more.
The devastating ordeal cast a shadow over the league's season finale, as well as what should have been the brightest moment of young Hali's career. The Oklahoma City Thunder would go on to win, deservedly so, but the the whole thing left fans wondering what could have been if Indiana had Hali at their disposal for the full game.
After the fact, forward Pascal Siakam had nothing but praise for his beloved teammate, who will now likely miss all of next year, too.
"I'm proud of that kid, you know? He went through so much during the year. A lot of criticism. It's a lot for a young kid to go through," Siakam said in his postgame comments.
"He had a lot of stress, and he just kept battling. Like, he kept fighting every single day. He kept just working. And he did some incredible things this whole playoff run and this year, and yeah, I'm just super proud of him. Obviously, it hurts because we couldn't get it done and I wanted it so bad for him, just cause I know that he gave us everything. Everything he had. It just hurts that he couldn't see it through with us."
"He was in the locker room talking to everyone," which shows, "just how selfless he is," Siakam continued. "He's going through some tough times and he looked out for us and he wanted to be there for us. It just shows his character and who he is as a player. [He is] one of the big reasons I'm here [in Indiana]. He made it super fun for me to be here."
Listen to that starting at 11:08:
Although he was possibly in pain and/or mentally upset given the circumstances, Haliburton was also waiting in the tunnel to greet his crestfallen teammates after the loss. And per Siakam's comments, it sounds like that meant as much to the team as it probably did to Hali, as well.
We're wishing him well on the recovery journey ahead.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Pascal Siakam Sounded So Proud of Injured Tyrese Haliburton After Finals Loss.
