NBA Notes: Pacers, Tyrese Haliburton, Kings, Suns, Miles Bridges

Pacers

Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton wanted to turn off the Knicks’ championship celebration. Then he decided he needed to watch it.

“When the Knicks won, I thought to myself, ‘I gotta turn this s— off,’” Haliburton said during an appearance on the Boardroom Talks podcast, via Pacers On SI.

Haliburton missed last season while recovering from a torn Achilles, leaving him to watch Indiana’s rival complete the run he believed the Pacers could have interrupted.

Asked whether Indiana would have beaten New York had he been healthy, Haliburton answered like a competitor.

“Of course,” he said. “I’m an NBA player. I’m a competitor. Anybody else in my situation would say the same thing.”

Haliburton also made clear that he wasn’t diminishing what the Knicks accomplished. He eventually watched Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Karl-Anthony Towns celebrate with their families. Haliburton considers those players friends, even if the relationship changes when Indiana and New York share a court.

“When I see them, when they see me on the court, it’s smoke,” Haliburton said. “We hate each other when we’re playing, but after that, it’s love.”

That sounds less like softness than reality. NBA players can respect one another without enjoying someone else’s parade. Haliburton watched it. He did not have to like it.

Kings

Expectations for the Kings are hovering somewhere near the basement. Other than that, things are really great.

Sacramento has appeared near the bottom of several preseason power rankings after finishing 22-60 last season. Will Zimmerle of Kings On SI argued that the roster may be more functional than its reputation suggests. That’s an argument, not a prediction that the Kings are about to contend.

General manager Scott Perry kept Domantas Sabonis and Zach LaVine rather than trading either veteran for a diminished return. LaVine’s expiring contract could create significant flexibility next summer, while Sabonis still gives Sacramento an established offensive hub.

The Kings also added defenders around a core that includes rookie guard Darius Acuff Jr., De’Andre Hunter, Ben Simmons, Keegan Murray and Precious Achiuwa should give Sacramento more size and resistance than it showed last season.

Still, the roster sits somewhere between rebuilding and competing. That explains the skepticism.

The new relegation system also gives the Kings reason to avoid the bottom three rather than simply accept another lost season. Low expectations can be freeing. They do not solve the underlying questions.

Sacramento has more useful pieces than some rankings suggest. Now it must prove they form something resembling a team.

Suns

The Suns surprised the NBA by finishing ninth in defensive efficiency last season. Repeating that result may require a slightly different formula.

Phoenix ranked fourth with 9.5 steals per game and held opponents to 34.7 percent shooting from beyond the arc, the league’s second-best mark. The pressure declined after the All-Star break, however, and the Suns continued to struggle around the basket.

Brendan Mau of Suns On SI identified Miles Bridges and the team’s young centers as possible keys to maintaining that top-10 standing.

Bridges adds another large, switchable wing alongside Dillon Brooks. That should allow Phoenix to handle bigger scorers without placing every difficult perimeter assignment on Devin Booker or Jordan Goodwin.

The center situation is less settled because of Mark Williams’ injury. Khaman Maluach and Oso Ighodaro posted better defensive ratings than Williams in their minutes last season, though those numbers came in smaller roles and do not guarantee the same results with more responsibility.

Phoenix’s greatest defensive advantage may still be coach Jordan Ott’s system. Players pressured the ball, competed across lineups and generally accepted their assignments.

The Suns have enough wings to bother teams and enough young size to experiment. Whether they remain a top-10 defense will depend upon whether last season’s commitment survives the larger roles and new combinations.