For most of Game 5, the Indiana Pacers looked like they were running in oatmeal. Tyrese Haliburton? Scoreless at halftime. Pascal Siakam? Going full one-man-band mode. TJ McConnell? More on him in a second. The Thunder, meanwhile, were thriving. Jalen Williams casually dropped a playoff career-high 40 points while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander stayed surgical with 31 and 10 dimes. And don’t get it twisted—OKC punished Indiana’s early sloppiness like they were a JV squad trying to sneak into varsity practice.

The numbers told the tale before halftime even hit: 16-0 in bench points, 16-8 in paint dominance, 7-1 in points off turnovers. And if you blinked, you missed Rick Carlisle picking up a tech after a brutal Siakam turnover turned into a Jalen Williams disrespect-dunk.

Now, let’s talk about the Haliburton-sized elephant in the room. Why did the All-Star guard look like he was stuck in slow motion all night? Rick Carlisle gave it to us straight postgame: “He’s not a hundred percent. It’s pretty clear. But I don’t think he’s going to miss the next game.” Carlisle admitted that Haliburton was gassed midway through the first half. He actually pulled him early to give him a breather. “He just wasn’t moving well, was fatigued, was tired too,” Carlisle explained. And at halftime, the Pacers were legitimately worried he wouldn’t go back out.

“We were concerned at halftime, and he insisted on playing…we’ll evaluate everything with Tyrese and see how he wakes up tomorrow.” Look, it’s the Finals. Unless your leg is actually in the third row, you’re playing. That’s just the mindset. Haliburton did return, but the man looked like he was working retail on Black Friday—physically present but emotionally questioning his life choices.

He finished with 4 points on 0-of-6 shooting. And that includes 0-of-4 from deep. His shooting percentages dipped harder than Russell Westbrook’s three-point percentage in 2018.

Pascal Siakam was everywhere. The man had 28 points, 6 boards, 5 dimes, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. He was playing like someone who forgot this wasn’t a one-on-five exhibition. And frankly, he had to—because Haliburton’s jumper clearly missed the flight, and Andrew Nembhard played more like a ghost of point guards past.

But you can’t win a Finals game with one guy doing everything and the other guy barely walking. That’s not a championship formula—it’s a live reenactment of the 2007 Cavs.

Thunder’s Duo Delivers While Haliburton’s Bench Roars Late

While Haliburton was struggling, the Thunder were cooking. Jalen Williams dropped an insane 40 points on 56% shooting. SGA was his usual smooth self—42.9% from the floor, 92.9% from the line, and 10 assists to boot. This wasn’t an accident. OKC came to win.

But don’t ignore Indiana’s second-half surge. Led by McConnell’s fireball third quarter, the Pacers’ bench outscored OKC 20-0 in Q3. Yes, you read that right. The Thunder bench got straight-up McConnell’d. That’s like being Nutmegged, Dunked on, and Crossovered all at once.

McConnell finished with 18 points, 4 boards, 4 assists, 5 steals, and a perfect 1-for-1 from deep. Plus/minus? +4 in a game Indiana lost by 11. Translation: Every second he wasn’t on the court, Indiana lost ground.

So, where do we go from here? Tyrese Haliburton isn’t healthy, but he’s also not sitting unless his leg turns into a pool noodle. Carlisle made that much clear. But Indiana will need more than McConnell’s miracle quarters and Siakam’s nonstop motor if they want to stay alive in Game 6.

This isn’t the time for maybes. If Haliburton wants to leave his mark on these NBA Finals, he’s going to have to do it through pain—and quickly. The Pacers now trail 3-2 in the series, and the margin for error is gone.

But hey, if TJ McConnell keeps channeling his inner Allen Iverson crossed with prime Rajon Rondo, and Haliburton can at least find his jumper again, we might just get a Game 7 for the ages.