Jun 22, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) reacts after a play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the first half of game seven of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton Has One-Word Response to Newest Teammate

Originally posted on Indianapolis Pacers on SI
By Jason Fray | Last updated Jul 27, 2025 2:00 PM ET

In the wake of losing 10-year center Myles Turner in free agency to the Milwaukee Bucks, the Indiana Pacers had to work quickly to rebuild the center position within the roster.

One of the earlier moves executed by the Pacers this offseason was the acquisition of center Jay Huff.

Huff, who turns 28 in August, was added to the roster in a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies. The Pacers sent out a second-round pick and a future second-round pick swap in the offing.

More news: Surprise Pacers Wing Could Join Starting Lineup, Under One Condition

Huff initially broke into the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers back in 2021-22. An All-ACC defensive player at Virginia, he spent two years toggling back-and-forth between the Lakers and the team's G League affiliate before being let go.

From there, Huff bounced around between NBA franchises and G League teams. After short stints with the Denver Nuggets and the Washington Wizards, Huff concretely emerged as a rotation player last year for the Grizzlies.

Damn https://t.co/INP5DepfKC
— Tyrese Haliburton (@TyHaliburton22) July 26, 2025

His play caught the eye of the Pacers — and most notably Tyrese Haliburton. Huff has been playing pickup games in Spain over the summer. A clip of him dunking on players emerged, and Haliburton took to social media and seemingly was impressed with what he saw from the 7-foot-1 center.

More news: Pacers Make Massive Roster Move as Offseason Rolls On

Huff doesn't have a huge sample size to pull from over the course of his NBA career. However, there are some tantalizing aspects of his game that could mesh extremely well with Rick Carlisle's system.

For one, Huff is a career 52 percent shooter from the floor, and 40.4 percent shooter on 3-point attempts. He made more than one 3 a year last year for the Grizzlies, and this caters to the notion that he can space the floor adequately enough for the Pacers' guards to attack off the dribble.

Jay Huff incoming pic.twitter.com/HwKpjtumKl
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) July 8, 2025

Huff's bread-and-butter is his ability to block shots. He averaged nearly a block a game last year for the Grizzlies in 11.7 minutes per game. If he were to double his minutes at a modest 23.4 minutes this upcoming year, averaging nearly two blocks a contest would be an elite metric.

Given his ability to shoot from the perimeter coupled with his ability to protect the paint, Huff figures to do a lot of what Turner did for the Pacers at a fraction of the cost.

More news: Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton Says Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Had One of NBA's Greatest Seasons

For more news and notes on the Indiana Pacers, visit Indiana Pacers on SI.

This article first appeared on Indianapolis Pacers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: