Haliburton sets 'em up, Pacers knock 'em down, beat Knicks to close out 2023
The Pacers star guard continues to delivering dimes at a league-best rate.
Tyrese Haliburton continues invoking the names of legendary NBA points guards to compare his recent production.
In the Pacers 140-126 win over the Knicks, Hali delivered 22 points and 23 assists. This after a 21-point, 20-assist night with NO turnovers in the Pacers prior game against the Bulls. The 20 assists with 0 turnovers matched a feat only Chris Paul had produced prior.
After his second consecutive 20-20 game, Haliburton joined Magic Johnson and John Stockton as the only players to deliver the same numbers. Oh, and Haliburton did so with more assists and fewer turnovers than Magic and Stockton who both delivered the ball throughout their career better than any other players ever. Goodness.
Knicks broadcaster Wally Szczerbiak who referred to Haliburton last year as, “Mr. Supposed Wannabe Fake All-Star” while trying to pump up Jalen Bruson was in the Fieldhouse. Wally willingly ate the crow he deserved with a full mea culpa and even dapped up John Haliburton after the game, to let him know he was wrong. Still, Haliburton had to let Wally know during the game.
The only thing Haliburton struggled with against the Knicks was his three-point shot, finishing 2-10 from behind the arc. Fortunately, several of his teammates were on fire from behind the arc which helps boost those assist numbers. For the game, the Pacers were 23 for 43 (53.5%) from behind the arc. Remove Haliburton’s numbers and the rest of the squad was 21 for 33 (63.6%!!!) from 3-land.
Whoa.
And Buddy Hield was just 1 for 2 from three. Aaron Nesmith (7 for 11) and Myles Turner (6 for 8) did the bulk of the damage with Bennedict Mathurin making 3 for 5 off the bench. The offense was humming and helped close out the calendar year with a three-game winning streak, officially righting the ship after stretch of six losses in seven games.
The defense struggled to slow down the short-handed Knicks, which continues to be the focus for the Pacers. Prior to the game, Carlisle compared the Pacers elite offense to dating a pretty girl which can get boring after awhile if she can’t defend. The Pacers weren’t bored trying to slow down the Knicks. They had to endure a career-high 38 points from Donte DiVincenzo while also dealing with Julius Randle who was a load all night.
Jalen Smith and Obi Toppin did most of the work against Randle and fared quite well all things considered. Former Colts’ coach Chuck Pagano described Trent Richardson as a “rolling ball of butcher knives” after the franchise-altering trade (in a bad way) for the former first-round running back. That seems like an apt description for Randle’s game as he just pounds his was into the paint to get his shot or a foul. Nowhere near aesthetically pleasing. But Toppin and Smith took all of the hits and made Randle work, despite rarely getting a favorable whistle. Stix finally snapped to pick up a well-earned technical foul, but the work was still impressive. Yes, Randle finished with 28 points but he needed 22 shots to get there.
The Pacers are now in Milwaukee for the first game in their home-and-home series with the Bucks. If Haliburton records yest another 20 assist game, we can assume he won’t see that game ball.
Happy New Year!
Game Details
Where: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, WI
When: Monday, Jan. 1, 2024, 8:00 p.m. ET
TV: Bally Sports
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan
Projected Starters
Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Jalen Smith, Myles Turner
Bucks: Damian Lillard, Malik Beasley, Khris Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brooke Lopez
Injuries
Pacers: Bruce Brown (knee) - questionable
Bucks: Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf) - questionable
Happy New Year, Tom!