Tyrese Haliburton has really impressed me as he leads the Pacers to the NBA Finals!

These NBA playoffs have been very fun! The NBA in the 20's has proven to be the rise of the next generation and this new batch of stars has really intrigued me and have grown on me.

One player that has really caught my eye in a big way is Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton!

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Haliburton's rise has come a bit out of nowhere from my perspective. Don't get me wrong, he's pretty established as a consistent and respectable force in the league, but his steady progression as the leader of the Pacers has greatly impressed me.

As a player I did not really know what to make of Haliburton and his skillset/play style for awhile. I sort of put him in the 'above average' sort of box. Team USA in the 2024 Olympics barely played him and this sort of added to or somewhat confirmed this outlook I had about him.

Haliburton was simply an enigma to me. The Pacers don't always get a ton of national shine and in a league of emerging stars, it's rather easy to get lost in the shuffle.

But with a second consecutive deep playoff run, this one even deeper than their Eastern Conference Finals appearance a season ago, I'm starting to seriously come around on Haliburton. This dude is NICE!! I love watching him play honestly. When he's clicking, the whole Pacers team is clicking and they are just a tsunami of offense. Considering their team's defensive improvements and great head coach Rick Carlisle properly understanding the roster, the Pacers are in the middle of a perfect storm of winning right now. Some say the Pacers are underdogs, but I don't know about that.

Taking a closer look at Haliburton, he seems to be such a cool mix of pure aggression and pure IQ/instincts and he becomes seriously hard to handle. He's like smoke, you know he's around, but you can't really get to him. He's a bit skinny but he's got wiry strength and grit. His real sense of urgency and will to win really makes up for perhaps a slight lack of muscle. As an athlete overall, Haliburton is quite slept on. Oh yeah, the dude can be really clutch when he needs to be. Game 1 vs the Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals was a whole movie! Statistically speaking, their late comeback was one of a kind.

Haliburton is also just an energizer bunny out there too, and some credit has to go to the Pacers organization for constructing a deep roster to keep Haliburton fresh.

I not only love Haliburton's game, but I appreciate his demeanor. It's one thing to be well-spoken as Haliburton is, but he seems genuinely very intelligent, thoughtful and perhaps more tactical than people give him credit for. He has a quiet confidence.

For example, after advancing to the Finals, I really expected Haliburton to be a bit awestruck, but he was surprisingly locked in. In a post game interview, he expressed how he is already thinking about the upcoming matchup with OKC. Many players say similar things as they approach a championship, but I don't know the way he spoke on that, I really believed he was breaking down OKC's roster in his head. He's got charisma.

It's pretty wild to me that the Kings let Haliburton go a handful of seasons ago. I don't even think the Kings are dumb for that, it's not easy to project a player's growth, it is what it is. But it does shine a light on the seemingly unanswerable question, what makes an athlete truly great? What should teams be looking for, really? What traits? I have no good answers but it's definitely an intriguing thought.

I'm pulling for Haliburton and the Pacers in these Finals. I'm sort of worried about some of the sheer size that OKC presents with the likes of Hartenstein and Holmgren. The Pacers gas teams out a lot but OKC can run for days as well. I suppose the Pacers need to just test that gas tank out and see who really can lung it out.

OKC also better not overlook the Pacers, that's all I'm saying.

Haliburton's competitive nature versus SGA's calm, cool and collected attitude is going to be cinema. Haliburton is a sharp wolf, SGA is sort of a gamer, chill, graceful type.

These finals will be great, I'm hoping Haliburton and the Pacers shine and win it all! I can't wait!

Comment your thoughts on these NBA Finals!