The NBA Finals are supposed to be about legacy-defining moments, clutch performances, and the coronation of basketball’s next superstar. But right now, all anyone can talk about is the shocking collapse of Tyrese Haliburton’s biggest media defender, and the private messages that prove even his own supporters have lost faith.

His biggest supporter spent all season building Haliburton up as the “most dangerous man in chaos,” the underrated superstar who could will the Pacers to impossible comebacks. But after Game 5’s brutal reality check: a scoreless first half, a hobbling calf, and a performance so bad it had Stephen A. Smith saying the quiet part out loud, something broke. And the receipts just got leaked on national television.

During Thursday’s First Take, Williams dropped his white flag live on air – along with screenshot proof of a late-night text war with Stephen A. Smith. “I came today to surrender… I am not here to debate,” Williams confessed, flashing messages timestamped 11:25 PM, where Smith blasted, “It ain’t past your bedtime damnit. You saw me calling you and you damn sure know why. I don’t want to hear another word about Haliburton.”

The kicker? Williams’ own reply, “I got nothing to say right now. I need time,” before today’s brutal admission: “Aha, I’m saying aha… Haliburton is not a superstar.”

This isn’t just about one bad game. It’s about the complete unraveling of a narrative Williams built all playoffs. That Haliburton was the clutch god who “broke basketball logic.” The stats tell the ugly truth: in the Finals, Haliburton’s averaging just 14.2 PPG on 39% shooting, a far cry from his regular-season numbers (18.6 PPG, 9.2 AST). Meanwhile, Stephen A.’s leaked “glad he’s injured” hot take looks prophetic; Haliburton’s calf strain has turned him into a non-factor, and even his teammates admit “he’s not 100%.”

The real tragedy? Haliburton might be too hurt to save his own reputation now. As the Pacers face elimination in Game 6, the only thing louder than the Indiana crowd will be the echo of Williams’ surrender. And the sound of Stephen A. Smith’s “AaaaaaHaaaaaaaaaaaa” laugh ringing in Haliburton’s ears.

“Sit Him Down,” Perkins Sparks Firestorm

Kendrick Perkins didn’t just criticize Tyrese Haliburton during Game 5. He poured gasoline on the burning wreckage of the Pacers’ season. “Sit him down because I don’t want to hear anymore excuses,” Perkins snarled at halftime, accusing Haliburton of “going east-to-west instead of north-to-south.”

Fans erupted, calling Perkins a hypocrite given his own mediocre career. But the real dagger? Perkins was right. Haliburton’s 4-point, 7-rebound “performance” was the worst Finals showing by a star since 2011 LeBron. And his body language screamed defeat long before the final buzzer.

Now the Pacers face an impossible choice. Risk Haliburton’s health in a desperate elimination game, or let his nightmare Finals define his breakout season. Either way, one thing’s clear: after tonight, nobody’s calling him “underrated” anymore. They’re just calling him broken.