The 2025 NBA Finals have been historic for many reasons. Keeping aside the viewership woes, the Indiana Pacers vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder gave the audience everything an action thriller has to offer. Drama, action, suspense, and everything in between. Now, as the series stands at a tie of 3-3, Paycom Center is ready for Game 7, and so is Pacers’ superhero Tyrese Haliburton.

It’s been 9 years since we last got a Game 7. The last time the madness unfurled, LeBron James’s Cleveland Cavaliers faced the Golden State Warriors. Widely seen as the greatest Finals and most iconic Game 7, young Tyrese watched it on TV. Now, on the same historic path, he’s defying odds and pain for Indianapolis.

With the NBA title on the line, the Pacers guard is fired up to etch his name into Game 7 lore. Though nursing a nagging calf strain, he brushed it off Saturday as Indiana crushed OKC to keep the dream alive. Haliburton told the media, “I’m pretty much in the same standpoint I was before Game 6. Still a little stiff, a little sore. Good thing I only had to play like 23 minutes, so I’ve been able to get even more treatment and do more things. I just try to take care of it the best I can, but I’ll be ready to go for Game 7 next.”

Tyrese Haliburton nearly missed Game 6 after tweaking his right calf in Game 5, but fate had other plans. A pregame strength test during the team walk-through sealed it. Coach Rick Carlisle gave the green light, and Haliburton turned “maybe” into magic. The stage was too bright to miss. And he couldn’t let OKC snatch the title at his home arena, right?

Now, Sunday awaits with all its battles and glory. But Hali? He is drawing inspiration from LeBron James, who flipped the script for the Cavs in 2016.

Tyrese Haliburton recalls the 2016 NBA Finals experience

The Warriors had one hand on the trophy in 2016 with a 3-1 lead, but LeBron James had other ideas. The Cavaliers stormed back, sealed Game 7, and made history. LeBron dropped a triple-double that echoed through time. Draymond Green balled out too, but in vain. Cleveland danced, 4-3. Sometimes, legends rewrite endings—and this one had Cleveland’s name scribbled in gold, glitter, and a whole lot of grit.

Recalling the day, the LeBron James fan Tyrese Haliburton shared with the media, “I don’t necessarily remember, but yeah, I remember where I was. I remember what the game was like, the energy of the game, being with my friends, and watching it all together. There was a mixture of Cavs fans, a mixture of Warriors fans. I think that’s probably one of the greatest games I’ve ever been able to watch as a basketball fan. That’s what makes Game 7 so fun.”

The last and only time the Cavs won the championship, that is, in 2016, Hali was only 16. And here he is, 9 years later, waiting to rewrite history in his own terms. Averaging 18.6 ppg, 3.5 reb, 9.2 ast, the 25-year-old is fighting through pain just to add the banner that’s been long overdue. The banner that Reggie Miller couldn’t clinch is just 48 minutes away from Tyrese’s reach. And yes, it’s game on, beast mode for the Pacers.