Tyrese Haliburton isn’t just dishing out assists on the court—he’s doing solids for his fans off it too. And the Indiana Pacers star seems to have an announcement for his fans heading into the Eastern Conference finals against the New York Knicks – a series that a WWE legend thinks has a touch of sports entertainment magic to it. So what’s the latest on Pacers star?

If you’ve followed Haliburton’s career, then you’ll know he’s a huge pro wrestling fan. We’ve seen the Pacers point guard take his rivalry with Jalen Brunson from the NBA’s hardwood to the WWE’s squared circle. But now, fans of the WWE 2K series will have an opportunity to play as the 26-year-old Indiana star.

Yes, you read that right! Tyrese Haliburton will be joining the WWE 2K25 roster as a part of the Dunk & Destruction DLC Pack. He joins the Great Khali and Abyss as the latest playable character to be announced as a part of this DLC. Two more NBA players will join Haliburton as part of this DLC.

But as his fanbase rejoices after this announcement, Tyrese’s recent actions have given one fan an even better cause to celebrate. Recently, a Pacers fan named Hans Perez was heckled by Knicks fans on the streets of New York. His crime? He was out and about wearing a Haliburton jersey.

But now, Hans’ fortunes have done a 180 after Tyrese Haliburton heard what he went through. And during his appearance on the Pac McAfee Show, the Pacers point guard made a beautiful gesture towards his fan who joined him on the show. “I wanna personally bring you and a plus one out here, to come to game four, here in Indiana. I’ll bring you guys out here, put you guys up, get you guys seats in the game,” he told Hans.

Hans, a firefighter, fell silent in shock at the incredible gesture. But soon, he spoke up as Pat McAfee asked about whether he’d have any scheduling issues given the game was on a Tuesday. “I mean, I’m pretty sure we could work something out,” said Hans as McAfee joked, “Make sure that’s first class.”

What a lovely gesture from Tyrese! But we’re sure the rest of the Pacers’ lineup will also be happy to have a fan like Hans Perez in the crowd, supporting them in their second conference finals in a row against the Knicks. And WWE legend Triple H thinks his company had a hand in building up this showdown between the East’s elite.

WWE Legend and Executive Triple H reacts to Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers facing off against the Knicks

The WWE is the king of sports entertainment. No one delivers on long-term, scripted storylines better than the pro wrestling giant. But what does that have to do with the Eastern Conference finals this year? Well, WWE chief of content, Triple H, thinks this was written in the stars all along — by his company, no less!

Tyrese Haliburton’s WWE cameos are no secret. He made countless appearances during WWE events over the years. But Tyrese may have inadvertently built up the upcoming series against the Knicks when he and fellow NBA star Jalen Brunson appeared on SmackDown last year. And Triple H is not shying away from embracing this narrative.

“It’s almost like we wrote it…,” wrote Paul Levesque, aka Triple H, in an X post. The post itself contained two pictures. One had the WWE legend standing alongside Tyrese. While he was standing next to Jalen Brunson in the other. It’s clear that Triple H is implying that this Playoff rematch had WWE written all over it. And it does make sense!

Haliburton and the Pacers beat the New York Knicks and Brunson in a heated 7-game series last year in the Playoffs’ 2nd round. But, right after that series, both he and Brunson appeared on WWE SmackDown. They almost came to blows after jumping into a feud between two WWE superstars. Now, with the Knicks knocking out the Boston Celtics in six games, these two are set for a heated rematch.

And if we’re being honest, it’s hard to disagree with Triple H. After the “drama” we saw between Brunson and Haliburton, it seems the WWE and NBA worked together on this one. However, unlike the WWE, there’s nothing scripted about the upcoming Eastern Conference Finals. After all, there will be no brass knuckles, no allies or rivals running interference. This rematch will be purely about skill and who has what it takes to make it to the NBA Finals!

But if you’re an NBA and WWE fan jonesing for some Haliburton vs Brunson… You’re already halfway there with Tyrese’s most recent announcement!