Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton’s father will not attend games for the foreseeable future following an on-court incident with the Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo on Tuesday night.
John Haliburton, a vocal supporter of his son who has attended Tyrese’s games with the Pacers, home and away, and with Team USA overseas, will not be at Indiana’s second-round playoff series when it starts Saturday against the Cleveland Cavaliers. It is unknown if his absence would extend beyond the second round, if the Pacers advance, or if it would continue into next season.
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A Pacers spokesman confirmed the decision for Mr. Haliburton to step away was made by the Pacers’ front office, but also that Mr. Haliburton agreed.
The elder Haliburton confirmed that it had been decided that he would stay away from his son’s games, which was first reported by ESPN.
The younger Haliburton scored the game-winning, series-clinching basket in a bonkers Game 5 against Milwaukee in which it appeared multiple times that the Pacers would lose. The crushing turnover by the Bucks preceded Haliburton’s basket, and almost as soon as the buzzer sounded, John Haliburton was on the floor immediately, waving a towel near Antetokounmpo.
The Bucks’ 6-11 star, whose nickname has long been the Greek Freak, seemed to take exception to Mr. Haliburton’s towel waving, perceiving it as taunting, and engaged in what seemed like a stern but respectful back-and-forth. Several skirmishes between Bucks and Pacers players followed.
In his postgame remarks, Tyrse Haliburton said he didn’t agree with his father’s actions, and in a text message to The Athletic, Mr. Haliburton said, “I was wrong, first and foremost. I got caught up in the moment and went on the court.”
Tyrese Haliburton averaged 17.6 points and 11.6 assists against the Bucks. Mr. Haliburton was a mainstay on the Team USA entourage that went to the Middle East twice, in 2023 and 2024, to Manila in 2023 and to Paris in 2024 as part of the World Cup and Olympics, respectively.
(Photo: Trevor Ruszkowski / Imagn Images)
