If there’s one thing the Indiana Pacers are good at, it’s keeping you guessing. They’ll fall behind, try to crawl their way back, and just when you think they’re done, they flip the whole thing on its head. And every time that happens, it’s Tyrese Haliburton playing the closer. He isn’t some high-volume scorer looking to drop 40 for the headlines. Nah, he’s the guy setting the table, getting his teammates going, and making sure everyone eats. But when crunch time hits? That ball is his. And more often than not, he cashes in. The 2025 Finals opener against OKC was no exception. Haliburton kept his cool, then ripped the game away when it mattered most. And people were watching, and so was Austin Rivers.

“We never believe that the game is over until it hits zero.” That’s what Tyrese Haliburton told reporters after a close 111-110 win, sealed, of course, by the man himself. With just 0.3 seconds left, Tyrese pulled up for a fearless 21-footer, sending the Thunder bench into stunned silence. It wasn’t just a game-winner; it was one of those cold-blooded moments that hang in the air long after the buzzer sounds. And that shot got Austin Rivers feeling nostalgic. He took a moment to reflect on how clutch mid-range pull-ups like that have become a lost art in today’s NBA.

Recently, Austin Rivers hit on something every old-school hoop fan’s been thinking. “The mid-range jump shot is a lost art until there’s a minute or two left in the game,” he said. And honestly, he’s not wrong. In a league obsessed with either launching threes or getting easy buckets at the rim, that mid-range pull-up becomes the forgotten move until crunch time, of course. While calling out this sad little reality, Rivers made sure to give flowers to the legends who mastered that space. “Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Joe Johnson. Just thinking of like really clutch players. These guys all had nasty mid-range jump shots, man,” he added. And if you’ve watched those guys, you know exactly what he means. Cold-blooded fadeaways, elbow pull-ups, all those shots that could completely torch defenses.

The thing is, it’s not a secret why the mid-range has faded. The NBA has leaned hard into analytics, and the math says it’s better to jack up a three or finish at the rim than settle for a mid-range two. So now, most teams either stretch the floor and bomb from deep or attack the cup. That beautiful mid-range jumper? It’s mostly reserved for the specialists or those wild, late-clock moments when you gotta get a shot up. But every now and then, a guy like Haliburton reminds you it still hits different. They make sure those moments don’t go unnoticed. And Rivers is quick to give props where they’re due. Just like he did when the Timberwolves came up short in the Western Conference Finals this year.

Austin Rivers opens up about the urgent upgrades needed around Anthony Edwards

The Minnesota Timberwolves have been knocking on that Finals door for two straight years, but somehow, they just can’t kick it down. Two consecutive Western Conference Finals losses will do that, force you to look in the mirror and start thinking about what’s missing. And who better to weigh in than Austin Rivers? 

The former Wolves guard’s been watching this from up close. He knows what clicks and what flatlines when the lights get too bright. In his eyes, the Timberwolves have some of the best raw talent, and no one’s arguing that. But what they’re missing are those little intangibles, the kind that OKC and Indiana are flashing in the Finals right now.

Austin, being a modern hoops head, gets what it takes to actually win when it matters. On his Off Guard show, he didn’t sugarcoat a thing. “You’ve gone to the Conference Finals two years in a row. Clearly, you have some good intel and a good team. You’re just a piece or two away,” he said. And then came the real kicker. 

“There needs to be another dominant ball-handler… someone who can take the ball out of Ant’s hands, say ‘Slow down,’ and have that respect to create and dribble other than him. He needs one other guy.” And honestly? He’s not wrong. Mike Conley Jr.’s a rock-solid vet, but let’s be real, he’s 37. And Minnesota can’t afford to be passive in a loaded West.