I’m not a fan of a particular NBA franchise. I’m sure most of you reading this are not either. The NBA doesn’t exactly make it easy. It’s been discussed ad nauseum why the league’s ratings are down, or why the product is bad, or the problems with the way the league is covered by its main media partner. As just a guy in central Iowa with no allegiances, it’s easy to write the NBA off as something that isn’t worth my time. That’s a sad sentiment to have as a fan of the game of basketball. A lot of you Cyclone fans are probably lapsed Bulls fans. Maybe you followed Fred Hoiberg there. Maybe you were Jordan guys or your parents were Jordan guys. Either that or you’re a Timberwolves fan because you like the other Minnesota pro sports teams. Who knows how you got there with your team, if you even have a team. However, this summer, that sentiment of hating the NBA has been completely flipped on its head. This is a space for positivity, and it is obvious why that is the case.
On Thursday night, the Indiana Pacers defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 108-91 to set up a decisive Game 7 of the NBA Finals. Tyrese Haliburton, our guy, had 14 points and 5 assists in the runaway win. He only played 23 minutes, because that’s all that was needed, as he guts his way through a calf injury. I have no idea the severity of the injury. He looked fine from my perspective watching the game on tv. I heard on the broadcast prior to tipoff that Tyrese said if he didn’t try to play, he’d regret it for the rest of his life. How refreshing is that to hear from a star player? Sometimes when you follow the NBA from afar, you get the sense that the best players don’t really like basketball all that much. You definitely sense it from the Stephen A. Smith’s of the world. Basketball is secondary to the personal drama, and the “who is switching teams” anticipation of the offseason. I don’t care about that at all. I just want to watch my guy play and succeed. Haliburton’s extended run in these playoffs has just been about hooping.
The Thunder should be just as enjoyable to follow as the Pacers, Cyclone biases aside. But now that we’ve watched them up close for 6 games, you get a sense of why NBA hardos don’t like this team. They flop. They foul-bait. They complain. They play super physical defense. Their star player gets heaps of praise, when all he seems to do is dribble and take an endless parade of mid-range jump shots and free throws. Meanwhile, the Pacers play fast, move the ball, and take chances. You get the sense that Tyrese throws crazy passes just to see if they will work. He is the catalyst. He moves the basketball like a conductor directing a symphony. He makes it impossible to not have a good time watching his team play.
Not only that, Tyrese has made clutch plays in these playoffs that Hall of Famers go their whole career without. Remember that controversy with his dad getting in Giannis’ face after the Pacers beat the Bucks? Yeah, that happened like 6 weeks ago, after Tyrese made the winning shot to cap a huge comeback in the final minute. Other than Brock Purdy in the Super Bowl, I haven’t seen anything pull Iowa State fans together like his shot in Game 1 against the Knicks, or the winner in Game 1 of the Finals. He makes clutch play after clutch play, and does it with a smile on his face. His attitude screams, “I don’t care what anyone says about me.” That’s infectious! It makes me want to hop on the cesspool that is social media and read everything people post about him.
This Pacers team embodies the underdog mentality that I think a lot of Iowa State fans carry with them. Indianapolis is the small market, just like Ames. Despite being an all-star, Tyrese is dogged by his supposed shortcomings as a scorer, or his “passive” nature. No matter how much success Iowa State has on the field, we’re still poked fun of for lack of historical success, or not having that major breakthrough. Forget all that. Look at how far Tyrese has come. He’s one win away from an NBA championship. So gear up Cyclone fans. For one more night, we get to rally behind our guy. For one more night, we get to revel in the pure joy of this player who proudly reps our school, leading his team as the lightning rod of conversation for sports media at large. It has been an incredible ride. I hope you all have had as much fun as I have just watching the games and getting invested in these playoffs in a way that I never expected.