Tyrese Haliburton Talks WWE Fandom, Reveals His 'Ultimate Goal' with Future Partnership

Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton provided some insight this week into his WWE fandom and his goals with the company moving forward.

Speaking to Nick Friedell of The Athletic, Haliburton explained that WWE is a lifelong passion of his, and he discussed the surreal nature of getting to be so heavily involved with the company.

"It's so fun," Haliburton said. "My fiancée always jokes with me because she's like, 'I like going to things with you, but I never see you that excited as I do at WWE events.' I'm like a kid in a candy store. It's so cool, the relationships I've been able to build with the company and with guys like [WWE head of creative] Triple H. I grew up watching Triple H, and now, he's gonna be at my wedding. That s--t is so cool to me.

"I can't really put it into words because basketball has obviously always been my main passion. But other than basketball, it's always been wrestling and watching wrestling. So, the fact that I'm able to play on the biggest stage in the NBA and chase my dream there, while also having access to all the wrestling events I want to go to, it's really a dream come true."

In addition to being shown in attendance at numerous WWE shows in recent years, Haliburton has also become part of the show on a few occasions.

Most notably, Haliburton was in Logan Paul's corner for a match on SmackDown in June 2024. The event took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and it was only about a month after the Pacers had eliminated the New York Knicks from the NBA playoffs, so Haliburton was treated like a true heel by the crowd.

Much to the fans' delight, Knicks star Jalen Brunson prevented Haliburton from handing brass knuckles to Paul, and then he came to LA Knight's aid with a steel chair, chasing off Paul and Haliburton in the process.

Also, while recovering from a torn Achilles, Haliburton was in the front row last year at SummerSlam, and John Cena took Haliburton's crutch and used it against Cody Rhodes during their match.

While Haliburton has yet to wrestle a match or truly get physically involved, he told Friedell that taking a bump in a WWE ring one day is high on his list of priorities.

"Honestly, I want to do everything," Haliburton said. "I want to experience everything once. I want to get in the ring one time and take a bump. The Pacers would never allow that. So, it'd probably be a thing where I'd have to ask for forgiveness more than permission—a little Dennis Rodman. That would be my dream.

"If we had won a championship, I probably would've had more free rein this summer to try something, but I'm a little banged up right now. Eventually, though, that's the ultimate goal—just take one bump."

As Haliburton mentioned, there is precedent for active NBA players competing in wrestling matches, as both Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone did so in WCW in the 1990s.

It is fair to wonder just how much Haliburton would be able to get away with doing in WWE while under an NBA contract, especially since he continues to recover from a devastating injury.

However, it is something he could always revisit when his playing days are over, although that may be a decade or more away for the 26-year-old guard.