But he was limited to eight points, six assists and two rebounds Thursday. The All-NBA point guard didn’t even have a basket in the first half, when the Pacers’ total of 45 points was just two more than the had in the first quarter of Game 4.

Former Pacers star Paul George has lofty praise for Tyrese Haliburton, who is on the verge of leading the franchise to the NBA Finals

Haliburton's conversation with the WNBA legend paid dividends across the first three rounds of the 2025 NBA playoffs

Haliburton, whose dramatic buzzer-beater sent Game 1 into overtime before the Pacers won, had scored at least 30 points twice against the Knicks in these Eastern Conference finals. But on Thursday night, he was uncharacteristically quiet with eight points on just 28.6 percent shooting from the field.

Perhaps the biggest reason for that has been the play of point guard Tyrese Haliburton. Haliburton has played some of the best basketball of his career in the playoffs. Game 4 against the Knicks had him play the best game of his career.

In a critical Game 4, the Pacers’ offense found a new gear, and their offensive rating jumped to 126.2, thanks to a masterclass 32-point triple-double from Tyrese Haliburton — with zero turnovers — in front of his father, who was back in the building.

At first, the box score didn’t look right. Tyrese Haliburton’s numbers were so dramatically different from what they were two nights prior.