Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton out of Game 7 with injury

Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton left Game 7 of the NBA Finals on Sunday after suffering an apparent non-contact lower-leg injury.

ESPN's Lisa Salters, citing Haliburton's father, reported that it is an Achilles injury.

Haliburton immediately dropped to the floor, smacked the floor and looked to be in severe pain before being helped to the locker room. He was unable to put any weight on his leg as he was carried off with a towel over his head. 

The entire scene was very reminiscent of what happened to Kevin Durant in the 2019 NBA Finals when he was a member of the Golden State Warriors. He suffered a ruptured Achilles in the final game of that series that sidelined him for the entirety of the 2019-20 season. 

Haliburton is not only the Pacers' best and most important player, but he has also been their most clutch player in the playoffs. He has consistently elevated his game in crunch time and made some of the Pacers' biggest shots of the season. 

He was able to come back in Game 6 from a calf injury and finished with 14 points in 23 minutes of action in the Pacers' 108-91 win to force the Sunday's Game 7.