This time, the playoff game did not end with Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton showcasing his stardom.
No game-winning shot. No boisterous celebration. No record-setting moment that sparked comparisons to other NBA greats.
Instead, Haliburton labored through the Pacers’ 123-107 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday in Game 2 of the NBA Finals with another version of his postseason résumé. Haliburton lacked aggressiveness. He missed shots. He failed to make a major imprint on the game.
Haliburton posted 17 points and recorded nearly as many turnovers (five) as assists (six). Haliburton shot similarly in Game 2 (7-for-13) as he did in Game 1 (6-for-13), but he went only 2-for-7 through the first three quarters. Haliburton seemed hesitant when attacking the paint, hunting for shots and even finding open teammates against the Thunder’s swarming defense.
Granted, OKC didn’t win Game 2 to tie the Finals series at 1-1 just because of Haliburton’s struggles.
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton brings the ball upcourt against the Oklahoma City Thunder during Game 2 of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center on June 8, 2025.
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton brings the ball upcourt against the Oklahoma City Thunder during Game 2 of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center on Sunday.
Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images
Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played once again at an MVP level (34 points, 11-for-21 shooting, 11-for-12 from the free-throw line, eight assists, four steals). Thunder center Chet Holmgren provided a strong bounce-back performance in Game 2 (15 points on 6-for-11 shooting, six rebounds) following a Game 1 dud (six points on 2-for-9 clip, six rebounds). OKC’s Alex Caruso (20 points) and Aaron Wiggins (18) provided robust secondary scoring in addition to their usual intangibles.
Haliburton’s teammates also didn’t give him much help. Pascal Siakam lacked the usual efficiency that defines his shooting and cutting with 15 points on 3-for-11 shooting. Obi Toppin lacked his normally dependable shooting touch from the field (1-for-8) and from 3 (1-for-5).
Tyrese Haliburton 2025 postseason stats
G PPG RPG APG FG% 3-pt FG%
18 18.4 5.8 9.3 .469 .333
But Haliburton’s poor play in Game 2 represented the unpleasant part of his playoff reputation. Four times this postseason, Haliburton has made game-winning shots that capture his confidence and effectiveness in crunch time. Nine times this postseason, Haliburton has logged at least 10 assists to further showcase why he has become the NBA’s best passing point guard. And in five other games, Haliburton has shot below 40% from the field and shrunk in moments the Pacers needed him the most.
Haliburton didn’t shoot as poorly Sunday as he did in those five other duds. He nearly mirrored it, though. Haliburton appeared on his way toward replicating those performances through the first three quarters until he tried to rally Indiana with a dramatic comeback that came too little and too late. Haliburton did not play with the aggressiveness and edge that his trainer, Drew Hanlen, often pleads with him to play with entering every game. Haliburton didn’t make up for his low scoring with sharp passing or defense.
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton looks to pass the ball as Oklahoma City Thunder guard Cason Wallace defends during Game 2 of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center on June 8, 2025.
Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton looks to pass the ball as Thunder guard Cason Wallace defends during Game 2 of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center on Sunday.
Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Some of these performances may have fueled the results behind The Athletic’s infamous player poll that ranked Haliburton as the NBA’s most overrated player. That’s unfair. Star players can’t have a perfect game. Star players show consistency, though. They mirror their season averages. In games when they lack their fastball, they make up for it in other areas.
Haliburton has camouflaged some of that poor play with clutch shots. He deserves kudos for staying resilient and confident to deliver with sharp decision making and shooting during such crucial moments. Yet, Haliburton also deserves scrutiny when he pulls a disappearing act as he did in Game 2.
This isn’t about how many shots Haliburton takes and makes. Sure, Hanlen often tells Haliburton to shoot more and to play more selfishly. But this is more about how Haliburton’s aggressiveness level dramatically determines the Pacers’ success or failure. It dictates Haliburton’s quantity and quality of shots in the paint and beyond the arc. It influences Haliburton’s odds to set up his teammates with easy baskets. It increases the chances the Pacers can play at a fast pace. It strengthens Haliburton’s efforts to manage opponents’ physicality, double teams and switches.
Haliburton’s play won’t guarantee the Pacers can beat the Thunder in another Finals game, let alone the series. Gilgeous-Alexander remains too dominant with his scoring at the rim, ability to draw fouls and improved outside shot. The Thunder have the league’s best defensive team because of their surplus of capable wing players in Caruso, Jaylen Williams, Lu Dort and Cason Wallace. Haliburton’s play will determine, however, if the Pacers have any chance at beating the Thunder.
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton line up a shot against Oklahoma City Thunder guard Isaiah Joe during Game 2 of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center on June 8, 2025.
Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton line up a shot against Thunder guard Isaiah Joe during Game 2 of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center on Sunday.
Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
Haliburton gave Indiana that shot in Game 1 against the OKC by, you guessed it, making and taking another game-winning shot. The Pacers didn’t have a chance in Game 2 because they saw a much different version of Haliburton. Given his track record, Haliburton can rectify this beginning with Game 3 on Wednesday in Indiana. But can he sustain that high level of play through the rest of the Finals?
The Pacers can’t afford Haliburton not to play at his best anymore. Indiana lacks a margin for error against this loaded Thunder team. OKC likely has learned from its Game 1 mistakes of squandering a 15-point lead and not fully taking advantage of the Pacers’ 25 turnovers.
Does that seem like a big responsibility? You bet. But that’s what NBA stars are expected to do. If Haliburton can make four game-winning shots, as he has so far in the playoffs, then it’s not asking much for him to play like an NBA star in every postseason game. The Pacers’ championship chances depend on Haliburton doing so.
Mark Medina is an NBA insider for Athlon Sports. Follow him onX,Blue Sky,Instagram,Facebook andThreads.