Tyrese Haliburton Jokes About Dad's Return, Reacts to Triple H Attending Pacers' Win

Indiana Pacers superstar guard Tyrese Haliburton joked that WWE Hall of Famer Triple H being in attendance for Tuesday night's Game 4 win over the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals may have trumped the return of his father, John Haliburton, to Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

Speaking to reporters after dropping a 32-point, 15-assist, 12-rebound triple-double in the Pacers' 130-121 win over the Knicks to take a 3-1 series lead, Haliburton said he was "happy" his dad was in attendance before adding, "I'm not gonna say it was more special, but Triple H being in the building was pretty fire too."

Haliburton's father had not been permitted to attend Pacers games since he was on hand for Indiana's series-clinching game against the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs.

The elder Haliburton had a run-in with Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo at the end of that game, and Giannis called it "disrespectful" after the fact, per ESPN's Shams Charania.

John Haliburton was subsequently banned from attending Pacers playoff games in person, but Charania reported prior to Game 4 that he would be permitted to begin attending Pacers home playoff games once again in a suite, starting with Game 4 of the ECF.

While it was undoubtedly special for Haliburton to turn in one of the best performances of his career in one of the biggest games of his career with his dad in the building, his love and respect for Triple H and WWE is legitimate as well.

Haliburton is a longtime pro wrestling fan who has attended several WWE events over the past year, including an episode of SmackDown last year at Madison Square Garden that saw him and Knicks star Jalen Brunson have a confrontation.

He also appeared via satellite on a recent episode of Raw, and it was revealed that Haliburton would be included in WWE 2K25 as a playable character via a DLC pack.

Haliburton has seemingly built a strong relationship with Triple H, as well as Raw commentator Pat McAfee, who was an All-Pro punter for the Indianapolis Colts and remains a strong advocate for the city of Indianapolis.

Triple H is one of the most iconic wrestlers of all time, and he is currently in charge of creative for WWE, so he received a huge ovation when he was introduced prior to Game 4:

Haliburton has a penchant for performing his best when the lights are the brightest, and that was on full display Tuesday as he played a nearly perfect game with a triple-double and no turnovers.

There is no telling if his father or Triple H being in attendance gave Haliburton some added motivation, but they were on hand to witness a truly special performance.

The Pacers are now just one victory away from reaching the NBA Finals for the first time since 2000, and if they make it, one can only assume Triple H will be welcomed to attend a Finals game in Indianapolis after what Haliburton pulled off with him in the crowd on Tuesday.

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