Tyrese Haliburton is finally back after missing 16 months of basketball.
The Pacers star returned to the court Wednesday night in the most fitting setting possible – his college at Iowa State.
Haliburton played 16 minutes in Indiana’s 123-112 preseason win over Minnesota, finishing with seven points, six assists, one steal and two blocks on 3-of-8 shooting.
It was the first time he had played since tearing his right Achilles in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals, an injury that forced him to miss the entire 2025-26 season.
And while the numbers weren’t spectacular, that was hardly the point.
“It’s the first game, but it’s got to slow down,” Haliburton said. “There was just a lot of adrenaline. I was hyped to be out there, excited, but I just got to slow down a little bit.”
That work finally paid off in front of the Iowa State fans who watched him develop into an NBA prospect.
Haliburton even bought out the student section for the game, creating an electric atmosphere.
“It’s the loudest preseason game I’ve ever been a part of,” Haliburton said. “But had a lot of fun, a lot of special memories I’ve made here and that just adds to it.”
The crowd gave him a standing ovation as he took the mic before tipoff.
“I love you guys so much. Iowa State is so special to me,” he said.
He compared the feeling of being back to being a rookie again, but there was one major positive – his ability to read the floor still felt natural.
“It’ll happen with time,” he said. “The only way to really replicate that is game reps against other guys. And that’s what that was. So really excited about it.
“There’s a ton of improvement that there is to be made on my end and on our team’s end, but just excited to be back on the floor.”