May 29, 2025; New York, New York, USA: Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) and New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) react during the first quarter of game five of the eastern conference finals during the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton Responds to Huge Game 5 Criticism

Originally posted on Indianapolis Pacers on SI
By Alex Kirschenbaum | Last updated May 30, 2025 9:00 PM ET

Two-time All-NBA Indiana Pacers star point guard Tyrese Haliburton had an underwhelming performance during his team's disappointing 111-94 Game 5 blowout defeat to the New York Knicks.

Indiana, up 3-1 in the series heading into the Madison Square Garden contest, blew an opportunity to close out New York and advance to its first NBA Finals in 25 years on Thursday night.

Across 31 minutes of action, Haliburton was hampered throughout the game by All-Defensive Team Knicks wing Mikal Bridges. It led to him finishing with just eight points on 2-of-7 shooting from the floor (0-of-2 from distance) and 4-of-5 shooting from the foul line.

More Indiana Pacers News: Pacers Star Named 'Face of NBA' by Surprising Source

The 6-foot-5 Iowa State product also logged six assists, two boards, two steals and one block, as well as an underwhelming -23 plus-minus.

Per Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star, Haliburton acknowledged his shortcomings in the effort.

Haliburton: "Yeah, rough night for me. I gotta do a better job of getting downhill."
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) May 30, 2025

"Yeah, rough night for me. I gotta do a better job of getting downhill," Haliburton conceded.

Haliburton: "I feel like I could do a lot better, so put that on me."
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) May 30, 2025

"I feel like I could do a lot better, so put that on me," Haliburton said.

More Indiana Pacers News: Former Pacers All-Star Fires Off Hilarious Jab at Shaquille O’Neal

In fact, Haliburton did do a lot better in Game 4, notching an impressive 32-point, 15-assist, 12-rebound triple-double with no turnovers.

TYRESE HALIBURTON TONIGHT:

32 POINTS
15 ASSISTS
12 REBOUNDS
0 TURNOVERS

SUPERSTAR

pic.twitter.com/sZzbPgh7hD
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) May 28, 2025

The Pacers star is logging still-impressive averages of 21.0 points on .440/.318/.810 shooting splits, 10.0 assists, 6.0 rebounds, and 2.4 steals thus far in the series.

His lack of consistency as a scorer is in part a reflection of his deferential offensive ethos. The 25-year-old is an adept distributor and, when dialed-in, a great clutch bucket-getter. But he is still reticent to completely take over from game-to-game. Armed with so many talented shooters, that's generally not something he needs to do.

More Indiana Pacers News: Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton Sends Major Promise to Knicks Before Game 6

With the Knicks now absolutely dialed-in defensively, however, it may behoove Haliburton to look for his first as the series continues.

Game 6 is slated to tip off at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday in Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The action will be broadcast via TNT and TruTV and streamed on the once-and-future HBO Max.

More Indiana Pacers News:

Pacers' Rick Carlisle Talks Major Challenges Knicks Present

Gilbert Arenas Takes Major Shot at Pacers Star Amid Playoffs

Pacers vs Knicks Playoff History: Who Has the Upper Hand?

Pacers Legend to Call Eastern Conference Finals Games vs Knicks

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: