A number of new stars have emerged in the NBA in recent months, and one of them is Tyrese Haliburton, the prolific guard for the Indiana Pacers.
He’s averaging 23.6 points on 49.6 percent field-goal shooting and 40.0 percent from 3-point range while dishing off a league-leading 12.6 assists a game this season, and he has led the Pacers to a 27-20 record, which puts them in sixth place in the Eastern Conference.
Haliburton was the 12th pick in the 2020 draft out of Iowa State University, the same school that produced San Francisco 49ers star quarterback Brock Purdy.
He was recently spotted wearing a Purdy jersey in order to pay tribute to the quarterback’s sensational performance in San Francisco’s win over the Detroit Lions in Sunday’s NFC Championship Game, per NBA on ESPN.
Tyrese Haliburton showing love to his fellow Iowa State Cyclone, Brock Purdy, for getting the NFC Championship victory last night 🔥
📸: @Pacers pic.twitter.com/oyYLAo1dND
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) January 29, 2024
Fans had a wide range of reactions to that outfit.
Tough🥶💥
— Easy (@AyooLvrd) January 29, 2024
Bro tyrna be him in the NBA
— Brodie 🌪️ (@RussGotGame) January 29, 2024
I didn’t even know he played in Iowa
— Another Chi Fan (@AnotherChiFan) January 29, 2024
Iowa State isn’t really known as a powerhouse in either basketball or football; prior to Haliburton, perhaps its most well-known NBA player was Jeff Hornacek, a sharpshooting guard who played in the NBA in the 1990s.
In two seasons with the Cyclones, Haliburton didn’t seem like anything special, as he put up a mere 15.2 points and 6.5 assists a game.
His first two NBA seasons were merely solid, but he emerged last season as an All-Star by tallying 20.7 points and 10.4 assists per contest.
This year, he has helped Indiana average 124.8 points per game, which leads the NBA and is among the highest scoring averages by a team in league history.
With two-time All-Star forward Pascal Siakam now on board, they could take another step toward becoming a legitimate championship contender.
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Insider Reveals Potential Tyrese Haliburton Return Date