The NBA Finals are where hot takes go to die. It’s a place where legacies are made, where narratives can flip on a single possession, and where, sometimes, an announcer’s perfectly crafted critique can age like milk in about 30 seconds flat. That’s exactly what happened to ESPN’s Richard Jefferson during the final, frantic minutes of Game 1 between the Indiana Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder. With the game on the line, RJ sent what felt like a direct message to Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton, only to have it spectacularly backfire in the most clutch way imaginable.

Let’s set the scene, because it was pure chaos. The Pacers had been trailing the entire game in Oklahoma City. They were down by as many as 15 points in the fourth quarter. With just three minutes left, Tyrese Haliburton wasn’t having a huge scoring night, and that’s when Richard Jefferson, on the live ESPN broadcast, decided to weigh in.

He dropped this line: “Your best player can’t put up tour dates in the NBA Finals.” The message was crystal clear: Jefferson was saying Haliburton, the Pacers’ best player, wasn’t being aggressive enough, wasn’t hunting for his shot enough, wasn’t dominating like a star should on the biggest stage.

And then? Tyrese Haliburton made him eat every single one of those words. In the final seconds, after SGA missed a 15-footer that would have likely iced the game, the Pacers pushed the ball up the court. No timeout from Coach Rick Carlisle. Just pure trust in his star point guard. Haliburton calmly dribbled to the right wing, rose up over a defender, and drained a silky-smooth midrange jumper with just 0.3 seconds left on the clock.

Final score: Pacers 111, Thunder 110. It was the only time the Pacers led the entire game. Unbelievable. But here’s the thing: this is what Tyrese Haliburton does. This was his fourth game-tying or game-winning shot in the final seconds of a game in these playoffs alone! He did it against the Bucks, the Cavs, and the Knicks. His clutch gene is so undeniable that people are already making comparisons to the ultimate Pacers legend, Reggie Miller.

“Hali”-lujah! The Pacers’ clutch king was always in the cards

Let’s not forget how Hali got to Indiana in the first place. He started his career with the Sacramento Kings, and he was good, too! He made the All-Rookie First Team and was showing all those flashes of his genius court vision. He was totally invested in turning that franchise around. But then, in a move that’s looking more and more like a massive blunder every single day, the Kings decided he wasn’t their guy.

In February 2022, they shipped him off to the Indiana Pacers for Domantas Sabonis. Haliburton was genuinely hurt. He admitted it, saying, “I just was so invested in it… they didn’t want me. They went a different direction.” You can just feel the sting in those words. Being told you’re not wanted, especially when you’ve poured your heart into a place? That’s tough.

But man, did he use that as rocket fuel. The trade to Indiana didn’t just give him a new city; it gave him the absolute keys to the kingdom, and he’s been driving this Pacers team like he stole it ever since. Coach Rick Carlisle knew right away what he had. He said landing a 21-year-old Haliburton “made it very clear what our identity as a team needed to be. We needed to be a fast-paced team with shooting.” The Pacers basically handed the ball to Hali and said, “Go be you.” And he’s been doing that, and then some.

He didn’t just get a little better in Indiana, he exploded into a full-blown superstar. We’re talking a two-time All-Star, the undisputed engine of the league’s most exciting offense, and a leader who his teammates would clearly run through a brick wall for. And his talent is so undeniable that he’s managed to unite two of the most famously opposing voices in basketball media: LeBron James and Stephen A. Smith.

LeBron has been gassing up Hali’s pass-first style and incredible basketball IQ for years. And Stephen A.? Even he has had to tip his cap to Haliburton’s “showtime” ability and his leadership during this incredible playoff run. When you can get those two to agree on something? You know you’re a special player.

But for all the praise, that weird skepticism still seems to follow him around. But Haliburton just keeps shutting down the doubters, one clutch shot at a time. And he doesn’t seem to care about the outside noise. He once said something that really tells you all you need to know about him: “At the end of the day, as long as my teammates love playing with me and my coaches love coaching me, that’s all that really matters.”

So, when you see Tyrese Haliburton out there, draining game-winners in the NBA Finals, remember it’s more than just a great play. It’s the story of his evolution – from a promising rookie, to a castoff who felt he wasn’t wanted, to the absolute king of Indiana basketball. He turned that trade into the best thing that ever happened to him, and now, he’s got the Pacers just a few wins away from a championship because of it.