Tyrese Haliburton’s thrilling game winner with 0.3 seconds left in Game 1 of the NBA Finals elicited an eruption of reactions on social media, though perhaps none were more notable than Dwayne Wade’s viral celebration, in which he loudly declared Haliburton a superstar.
Wade’s reaction was especially touching for Haliburton, who grew up a Miami Heat fan and idolized the three-time NBA champion. Haliburton and the Pacers’ run this postseason has been compared to that of the 2011 Dallas Mavericks, who ironically beat Wade’s Heat in the NBA Finals that season.
“That’s pretty fire because … I’m well, well documented,” Haliburton said. “I was a big Heat fan in that Heat era and D-Wade is a guy I’ve gotten to know pretty well through agents, our agency. That means the world because (he’s) definitely a guy I’ve looked up to my whole life.”
Haliburton’s postseason now includes four game-winning shots, one in each series thus far. All four have come after 15-plus point comebacks; Indiana’s five during this playoff run are the most by any team in a single postseason since 1998. The Pacers’ Game 1 comeback joined the Chicago Bulls’ comeback in Game 6 of the 1992 NBA Finals as the second 15-plus point fourth quarter comeback in The Finals post-1971.
Game 2 of the NBA Finals is set to tipoff at 8 p.m. ET Sunday. The game will be airing on ABC from Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.
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