Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers had their backs to the wall after a difficult Game 3. However, the 25-year-old responded in the most emphatic fashion by effectively single-handedly landing a 130-121 win for his team. Hali put up 32 points, 15 assists, and 12 rebounds, and remarkably had zero turnovers. He not only led the charge on a crucial night for Indiana but also became the first player ever to record 30+ points, 15+ assists, 10+ rebounds, and zero turnovers in a playoff game.

And it was clear that the night meant a lot to the Pacers’ ace as well. “I wanted to prove I could respond when my back is against the wall, my team’s back is against the wall. I feel like we responded the right way.” Yet the postgame buzz wasn’t just about his on-court brilliance. The return of John Haliburton, Tyrese’s father, created a new flashpoint — and not everyone is happy about it.

After missing eight games due to a quiet, league-issued ban, John Haliburton was back at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, cheering from a suite. His absence had followed a now-infamous altercation with Giannis Antetokounmpo, where he stormed the court after a Bucks playoff loss, waved a towel with his son’s face on it, and taunted Giannis with, “This is what we e—– do!”

And now, Lou Williams clearly explained how, to him, the punishment was inadequate. Speaking on Run It Back, the 3x Sixth Man of the Year didn’t hold back. “The NBA sets an example with everything else,” said the former Hawks star. “When you have a guy that has a personal interaction with a player inside of the confines of the lines of the game, that’s a violation. And you got to stand firm on that violation.”

While Williams’ argument makes a lot of sense, it is important to note that John Haliburton was far from the actual court and never publicly complained about his punishment. Moreover, the NBA never publicly commented on the ban, nor on the decision to lift it. But John Haliburton’s return has stirred debate across sports media.

Stephen A. Smith, speaking shortly after the incident on First Take, painted a broader picture: “Everybody in the league knows he talks a lot of smack about his son all the time. … A lot of times he’s not clapping back at people who said something about his son. He’s clapping at people about his son who never talked about his son, who never said a negative word about his son,” Smith noted. If it only stopped there, though. “Agents have complained about him. Other players have complained to the League about him, call a League office. They have complained about him,” Stephen A. further shared.

And on Get Up, NFL veteran and current analyst Ryan Clark went further, calling for a permanent ban! “If you’re going to run on the court, if you’re going to be big and bad, if you’re going to put yourself above the game, don’t come to the game ever. You have to make a stand so no one else does this,” he stated. Still, the Pacers head coach had a softer view.

“Glad he’s back. You know a father should be able to watch his son play basketball, so we welcome him back,” Coach Carlisle said, pretty much echoing what many Pacers fans felt.

Many joked about the athlete’s father’s situation, and even Tyrese himself acknowledged it: “I know people were saying, ‘Free Pops’ and Pops is free, but he was not in jail.” More than that, there was a truly emotional layer to the whole situation.

Tyrese Haliburton explained why it was nice having his father watch his match. “But growing up, he was working a lot on weekends so he didn’t come to a lot of my games and when he did come to my games, I wanted to play well. So, of course, I wanted to play well.”

Watching the match from a suite, Papa Haliburton was clad in a brighter shade of blue Indy sweatshirt. And with his father cheering for him, Tyrese is more than ready to meet the Knicks head-on for the fifth time in the series.

With a 3-1 win secured, will Game 5 be Tyrese Haliburton & Co.’s ticket to the NBA Finals?

Haliburton has been the driving force behind the Pacers’ offense, and the rest of the team followed suit. Finishing the half just two rebounds short of his third career triple-double, the All-Star closed the half on 69-64. “He was our leader tonight, and we had some difficult film stuff yesterday, not fun,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said about Haliburton. “We allowed things to go a different direction than they needed to go in Game 3 and tonight we were determined to turn it back in our direction.”

Other than Haliburton, the Indiana Pacers also saw 30 points from Pascal Siakam and 20 from Bennedict Mathurin. The Pacers’ bench led by 11 points even before the fourth quarter. Although the Pacers now lead with 3-1, they still have another game to get through, before further celebrations. While the Knicks did not secure this win, with Jalen Brunson posting 31 points, Anunoby 22 points, and Karl-Anthony Towns 24 points, they could still make a comeback.

For now, Tyrese Haliburton must keep the momentum going. And with his father also joining courtside, the NBA Star surely has enough motivation to give another excellent performance. Well, with Game 5 on the horizon, we will soon find out which way the series will head.