The Indiana Pacers hold a 2-1 series lead over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals, a surprising result thus far in the series. The Thunder were the heavy favorites entering the series, but like Rick Carlisle has done nearly his entire coaching career, he's found a way to keep winning games.
Tyrese Haliburton has been the engine running the show. Even if he hasn't always been productive in this series, his impact has been felt throughout the playoffs. But there was a chance he could've ended up as a Dallas Maverick.
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Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle
Jun 8, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle talks with referee Ben Taylor following a play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second half during game two of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
Tim MacMahon and Jamal Collier collaborated for a story on ESPN after the Pacers' Game 3 win, discussing how Rick Carlisle's coaching style evolved from his time in Dallas, starting with how he changed with Jason Kidd on the team, to see how it's working with Haliburton. But he also reveals that they tried to trade for Haliburton in the 2020 NBA Draft.
"The Mavericks had Haliburton as the No.1 player on their 2020 draft board, based in large part on [former Mavs director of quantitative research and development Haralabos] Voulgaris' analytics models. Sources told ESPN that the Mavericks dangled their two selections, No. 18 and No. 31, as well as their sometimes starter and sometimes sixth-man guard Jalen Brunson, to every team until Haliburton went off the board at No. 12 to the Sacramento Kings."
"We tried like hell to get him and move up, we just couldn't do it," Carlisle said to ESPN before the start of the NBA Finals. "When I tell you that Mark Cuban tried everything. When Mark puts his mind to something, he can usually figure something out."
The Mavericks ended up taking Josh Green with the 18th overall pick and Tyrell Terry with the 31st pick. Green was traded to the Charlotte Hornets last offseason, while Terry didn't last long in the NBA, citing anxiety issues.
While it would've hurt to potentially lose Jalen Brunson and likely that 2022 Western Conference Finals run, having a backcourt of Haliburton and Luka Doncic would've been an elite young backcourt. Maybe there's a world where Doncic doesn't get traded years later because he and Haliburton are in the same age range.
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