The late two drives behind Haliburton’s return game

A return after 16 months had two separate tests

Tyrese Haliburton’s first regular-season game after rupturing his right Achilles tendon came more than 16 months after the injury. He returned in Indiana’s opener in New Orleans, scored 23 points and recorded 12 assists. The Associated Press account, published by NBA.com and in a full copy at the Houston Chronicle, describes a game that tested both his place in the offense and his ability to finish when the score was close.

Those are separate questions. A guard can move well in a game and still need time to rebuild his timing with teammates. A player can also help control a finish without playing at full capacity for 48 minutes. Haliburton played nearly 34 minutes, according to Axios Indianapolis, and said he was tired. The record shows what happened during this night. It does not tell us how many minutes Indiana will ask of him in later games.

The AP article also notes that Haliburton made three three-pointers in seven minutes of Game 7 before the injury. That detail explains why his return drew attention to both movement and shooting. It describes his earlier performance, not his current shooting form.

Indiana entered the fourth quarter six points behind

The Pacers trailed 92-86 at the start of the fourth quarter. They were still down eight, 101-93, when Haliburton began a 90-second stretch in which he scored eight of Indiana’s next 10 points. The Pacers then went on a 15-3 run and took a 108-104 lead. Pascal Siakam helped carry the quarter, scoring 12 of his 30 points in the final period.

That sequence mattered because Indiana had spent three quarters trying to close a gap without losing the game’s pace. Haliburton did not need to score every possession. He helped create a stretch where the Pacers scored quickly enough to change the lead while the Pelicans had trouble matching them. The box score records the points and assists; the game summary identifies the timing that made those points consequential.

Two drives followed a tie at 116

New Orleans pulled even at 116 when Zion Williamson drove for a layup and converted the foul shot. On Indiana’s next trip, Haliburton drove past Trey Murphy and scored at the rim. The following time downcourt, he attacked Herb Jones, a Pelicans defender known for his work on the perimeter, and finished a layup through contact for a three-point play. That sequence put Indiana ahead for good, according to the AP recap.

The two possessions are useful evidence because they show what Haliburton chose when the game was level. He went toward the basket on consecutive trips rather than settling for a jump shot. The description does not say that every Pacers possession should be run the same way or that the defense offered identical coverage twice. It captures two decisions in a tight finish, with two defenders in front of him and the lead still at stake.

Nearly 34 minutes were one night’s workload

Haliburton played close to 34 minutes. The AP story reports that he described feeling tired during the game and said he had struggled at points before finding his rhythm. He had not played a regular-season game since the 2025 NBA Finals. A return to game action brings different demands from individual training: reading a live defense, changing direction after contact and making the next play while tired.

His coach, Rick Carlisle, said he was surprised by how long Haliburton played and praised his fourth-quarter control. That reaction is not a medical assessment, and it does not establish a future minutes plan. It tells readers how the coach viewed the opener. Indiana will have to make new decisions as it watches how Haliburton responds to repeated travel, back-to-backs and the uneven physical contact of regular-season games.

The AP report says Haliburton averaged 18.6 points and 9.2 assists in his last full season. His opener's 23 points and 12 assists can be placed beside that baseline, while one return game remains a small comparison sample. It establishes his first regular-season line after he missed the entire 2025-26 season, not a conclusion about whether those averages or workload will continue.

The return came with help from the rest of Indiana

Siakam finished with 30 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter. Obi Toppin scored 20 and Andrew Nembhard had 18. NBA.com’s player page lists Ivica Zubac with 16 points and 15 rebounds, while the AP recap lists 14 rebounds. This account uses the NBA player page’s total and preserves the discrepancy. Haliburton’s 12 assists connected him with those scorers, while the team still needed multiple players to produce in the final period.

That balance changes how to read a comeback game. Haliburton had the late baskets, but Indiana’s offense did not depend on one player scoring all its points. Siakam’s fourth-quarter production kept pressure on New Orleans before Haliburton finished two possessions after the tie. The AP report also lists Dejounte Murray at 23 points and Williamson at 22 for the Pelicans, so the final minutes came against a game that remained competitive.

The postgame reaction belongs to the event

After the final buzzer, Haliburton became emotional during an interview near the court. The AP report says he spoke about the long recovery and the Pacers fans who had travelled to New Orleans. Axios Indianapolis also described his tears as a response to being able to play again. Those details help explain why the opener carried weight beyond a box score.

The emotion is part of his account of returning, but it does not stand in for evidence about his physical condition. His reported scoring line, assists, minutes and closing possessions provide basketball facts. His reaction shows how he experienced the moment. Keeping those forms of evidence separate allows the story to acknowledge the personal scale of the return without making a medical claim.

The opener establishes a starting point

What this game supports is narrower than a season narrative: it documents Indiana’s comeback, Haliburton’s two late decisions after the tie and teammates who also scored. Further games must show whether those elements hold when opponents adjust.

The next comparison will be about workload and decision-making over time. Does his movement stay consistent as the schedule adds travel? How does Indiana manage his minutes when another guard has the ball? Can the Pacers keep creating paint touches when opponents prepare for those two late drives? One finish cannot answer those questions. It does give both the team and its readers a clear example to compare with the next close game.