After a brutal start of the season, the Indiana Pacers were able to steal a close 114-110 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday night. However, guard Tyrese Haliburton had one of his best performances, recording 34 points, 13 assists and three steals. After the game, he opened up about his struggles.
“It feels good to win,” Haliburton said. “At the end of the day, I think that’s all that really matters. I think my individual performance and how I view that, I mean, if we’re winning, I really don’t care.”
“I’ve been frustrated with myself because I feel like the games we’ve been losing, if I was myself, then we would be winning. I care more about us winning than what my numbers are looking like necessarily. But obviously, it feels good to see the ball go in,” he added.
Haliburton also finished with nine step-back 3, the second-highest single-game figure of his career. The win also gave the Pacers back-to-back wins after three straight losses and helped them improve to 8-10.
Tyrese Haliburton #0 of the Indiana Pacers attempts a shot in the first quarter against the New Orleans Pelicans at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on November 25, 2024 (Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
The Pacers starting point guard is averaging 16.8 points while shooting 39.2 percent from the field, and 32.9 percent from beyond the arc to start the year. But in his last three games he has improved: averaging 24.3 points per game, with shooting splits of 45.5 percent from the field and 46.2 percent from 3-point.
Haliburton has a message for his Pacers’ teammates
Haliburton also opened up about how his teammates have helped him navigate his difficult start of the season. “What I have to do is keep my joy for the game of basketball,” Haliburton said. “Everybody wants to say, ‘Be happy, have fun.’ Well, that’s hard to do when you’re not playing well or you’re losing. But I think it’s differentiating the difference between happiness and joy.”
“I’ve always had a joy for the game of basketball and a love and appreciation for what I do in this game my whole life. I think I just got caught in getting frustrated with myself and this kinda creeping into, like, job territory and that weighing on me. I think it’s just been big for me to keep that joy and that love and passion for the game of basketball because I genuinely do love what I do. I love this organization. I love my teammates,” he added.
