(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Indiana Pacers All-Star Tyrese Haliburton left Game 7 of the NBA Finals Sunday after appearing to re-injure the same calf that he strained in Game 5.
The Pacers ruled him out for the rest of the game in the second quarter with a right lower-leg injury.
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Haliburton fell to the floor in the first quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder and pounded the court in immediate, obvious pain. His Pacers teammates came out to surround him after the ensuing stoppage in play.
Haliburton couldn't walk and eventually needed to be helped off the floor to the Pacers locker room. He hopped on one foot to the tunnel with the aid of a teammate and trainer, unable to put weight on his injured leg.
He had a towel over his head as he made his way toward the locker room. Haliburton's father, John Haliburton, put his head in his hand while watching from the stands.
The injury is a devastating blow, not only to Haliburton and the Pacers, but to an NBA Finals that reached a Game 7 for the first time since 2016.
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"It's a heartbreak, man," Pacers center Myles Turner told ESPN's Lisa Salters after the first quarter. "It's unfortunate, in our biggest game of the year that the injury didn't hold up for him.
"But we've got his back. That's what it's all about. Next-man up mentality."
Haliburton was off to a hot start with a game-high nine points on three made 3-pointers. Oklahoma City led, 18-16 at the time of Haliburton's injury.
Haliburton, 25, is Indiana's best player and has been the heart of the Pacers run through the playoffs into the Finals. He's averaged 17.7 points, nine assists, 5.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game throughout the postseason while shooting 46.1% from the field and 32.9% from 3-point distance. He's hit late shots to either win a game or force overtime in a Pacers win in each round of the playoffs.
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Haliburton initially sustained a calf strain early in Game 5 and continued to play in the game. He was able play in Game 6 as he helped lead the Pacers to a blowout win with 14 points and five assists in 23 minutes to force Game 7.
But the toll of the injury eventually caught up to him in the biggest of the NBA season and his basketball career.