Tyrese Haliburton Takes Blame for 'Really Poor 1st Halves' and 'Learning' to be Better
Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton identified slow starts as a theme for himself through the first two games of the NBA Finals.
Following Sunday's 123-107 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Haliburton credited OKC's defense and said he's had "two really poor first halves."
"I just gotta figure out how to be better earlier in games," he said. "Kudos to them, they're a great defensive team. I'll watch the film and see where I can get better."
The two-time All-Star added that a tough playoff series like this is about making adjustments on the fly and figuring out what works.
"Through the course of a series, even in the games that you lose, you're trying to learn from them, see where you can get better," he told reporters. "We had some success there, me playing off the pitch a little bit more, flying around rather than if I'm in that high ball screen, which I feel like I am really successful at, but that gives them a chance to really load up, pack the paint. ... I think through the course of the series and already through these first two games, I'm learning where my spots are, where I can be better."
In the first half of Game 1, Haliburton had more rebounds (seven) than points (six). It was a similar story in Game 2 as he had just three points on 1-of-5 shooting and three assists by halftime.
The 6'5" guard isn't a volume scorer, which is somewhat obscured by his propensity to hit big shots. His scoring averages in the regular season (18.6 points) and playoffs (18.4 points) are almost exactly the same.
The Pacers are in serious trouble if Haliburton's early output in Games 1 and 2 are a sign of things to come.
Indiana is struggling to keep Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in check. The Thunder star has 72 combined points through the first two contests. The Eastern Conference champions can't match OKC's depth, either. The Thunder had a 48-34 edge in bench scoring on Sunday.
After Haliburton's late heroics to help the Pacers steal Game 1 in Oklahoma City, a lot of fans wondered whether the Finals will be closer than everyone expected. After Game 2, it's back to the drawing board for the Pacers.
Haliburton and the coaching staff will need to make some major adjustments to reclaim the on-court advantage.
