Tyrese Haliburton looks to make history after upper-cutting "overrated" jab
The Indiana Pacers and former Iowa State star could become the first former Cyclone to play starter's minutes and win an NBA title
Not to date myself, but remember when Linda Ronstadt crooned, “It’s So Easy to Fall in Love” in a chart-topping remake of a classic Buddy Holly and the Crickets tune?
Simpler times — or so it seemed back then.
Now it’s just so easy to be constantly outraged. Algorithms manufacture it. Trolls revel in it. But random NBA players? Apparently they can’t resist the troubling trend to court “engagement” tinged with anger and indignation (more on that later).
But Tyrese Haliburton’s built different. The former three-star recruit from Oshkosh spent two forgettable seasons at Iowa State (in terms of win-loss record) and has become a leading contributor to the We Will Collective, which helps current Cyclones make the most of their NIL (name, image and likeness)-based opportunities. He was drafted into the NBA by the Sacramento Kings in 2020 — and quickly became expendable, as he was eventually bundled into a trade package that sent him to Indianapolis.
Star status awaited Haliburton in the Hoosier state. He made the 2024 U.S. Olympic team. He became an NBA All-Star — and now has propelled the Pacers to heady heights.
Indiana will face the Oklahoma City Thunder beginning at 7:30 p.m. Thursday (ABC). The perpetual underdog Pacers have never won an NBA title and previously appeared in the finals just once, losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000. They’ll be the road team in a series pundits expect to draw low ratings because of the small markets involved.
Boo-hoo.
But let’s dig into a different set of ratings first. In late April, The Athletic published an article that saddled Haliburton with the “most overrated” tag among NBA players via an anonymous poll of his peers. Who voted? Who knows and who cares — well, except for Haliburton. After a win over the Milwaukee Bucks early in the Playoffs, he took to social media to post this: “Overrate THAT!”
Well, then.
All Haliburton’s done since is blossom into an even bigger star. He became the first player in NBA Playoff history to compile a stat line of at least 30 points, 15 assists, 10 rebounds and zero turnovers in an Eastern Conference Finals win over the New York Knicks.
Now he’s just the fourth former Cyclone to be one series win away from an NBA title, joining Jeff Hornacek, Talen Horton-Tucker (NBA champion with the Lakers in 2020) and Abdel Nader.
And it’s impossible to “Overrate THAT!”
Or this quote from Haliburton when he returned to Hilton Coliseum in early March:
“This place means the world to me. I love Ames, Iowa. I love Iowa State University.”
See? It really is “so easy to fall in love” with some things, and riding the outrage machine is a choice. We can reject it or embrace it. Haliburton’s done both — laughing and smiling and shining all the way to the NBA’s biggest stage.
And nothing rates above THAT.
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