Tyrese John Haliburton (born February 29, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "Hali" and "the Haliban", he is a two-time NBA All-Star and two-time All-NBA Third Team selection.
As a freshman playing college basketball with the Iowa State Cyclones, Haliburton set the program's single-game assists record. He had breakout success as a sophomore and was named to the All-Big 12 Conference second team despite suffering a season-ending wrist injury.
Haliburton was selected by the Sacramento Kings 12th overall in the 2020 NBA draft. In 2022, he was acquired by the Indiana Pacers as part of a trade package for Domantas Sabonis. Haliburton then earned back-to-back East All-Star selections, being named to the All-Star team as a reserve in 2023 and as a starter in 2024. In 2025, he led the Pacers to their first NBA Finals appearance in 25 years.
In 2019, Haliburton helped the United States to a gold medal and earned all-tournament team honors at the FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Heraklion, Greece. He was also on the national team roster that won gold at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Contents
Early life and family
Haliburton was born on a leap day, February 29, 2000, in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. He is the son of John and Brenda Haliburton. John is a basketball referee and former women's basketball coach while Brenda has attended nearly all of her son's basketball games. Haliburton has a younger brother, Marcel, from his parents' marriage, and two older brothers from his mother's previous marriage.
Haliburton's father is African-American and his mother is white.
High school career
Haliburton played basketball for Oshkosh North High School in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. As a sophomore, he was named to the All-Fox Valley Association (FVA) second team and defensive team. In his junior season, Haliburton averaged 18 points, six assists and five rebounds per game, earning FVA Player of the Year and Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division I All-State accolades with his team falling just short of the State Tournament.
As a senior, Haliburton averaged 22.9 points, 6.2 assists, 5.1 rebounds, 3.5 steals and 1.7 blocks per game, leading Oshkosh North to a 26–1 record. On February 18, 2018, he scored a career-high 42 points in a win over Kaukauna High School and West Virginia recruit Jordan McCabe. Haliburton scored 31 points, including 24 in the second half, and shot 18 of 18 from the free throw line in a Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Division I state championship victory over Brookfield East High School, his program's first state title. He was named Oshkosh Northwestern All-Area Player of the Year, Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year, and FVA co-Player of the Year. Haliburton was selected to the WBCA Division I All-State team and the USA Today All-USA Wisconsin first team.
Recruiting
Considered a three-star recruit by major recruiting services, he committed to playing college basketball for Iowa State on September 18, 2017.
College career
On November 6, 2018, Haliburton made his college debut for Iowa State, posting 12 points, four rebounds and four assists in a 79–53 victory over Alabama State. He scored a season-high 16 points in an 82–55 victory against Omaha on November 26. On December 9, Haliburton recorded 15 points and 17 assists, with one turnover, in a 101–65 victory over Southern. His 17 assists were the most by an Iowa State player in any game, surpassing the previous record set by Eric Heft in 1974. Through 35 appearances in his freshman season, Haliburton averaged 6.8 points, 3.6 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He was the only NCAA Division I true freshman, other than Zion Williamson, to accumulate at least 50 steals and 30 blocks. Haliburton had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 4.5, which led the Big 12 Conference and ranked second in Division I.
Haliburton was named Big 12 Player of the Week on November 11, 2019, during his sophomore season, after averaging 13.5 points and 13.0 assists in wins over Mississippi Valley State and Oregon State. On November 27, he scored a season-high 25 points, to go with nine rebounds and five assists, in an 83–76 loss to Michigan at the Battle 4 Atlantis. On January 4, 2020, Haliburton recorded 22 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists in an overtime loss to TCU, the first triple-double by an Iowa State player since Monté Morris in 2016. He was subsequently named Big 12 Player of the Week for the second time. After fracturing his left wrist on February 8 during a game against Kansas State, Haliburton was ruled out for the rest of the season. He averaged 15.2 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game as a sophomore. Haliburton was named to the second-team All-Big 12. After the season, he announced that he would enter the 2020 NBA draft and forgo his remaining college basketball eligibility.
Professional career
Sacramento Kings (2020–2022)
Haliburton was selected with the 12th pick by the Sacramento Kings in the first round of the 2020 NBA draft. On November 27, 2020, the Kings officially announced they had signed Haliburton. On December 23, he made his NBA debut, coming off the bench in a 124–122 overtime victory over the Denver Nuggets with 12 points, four assists, two rebounds and a block. On April 14, 2021, Haliburton recorded a career-high six steals in a 123–111 loss to the Washington Wizards.
On May 2, 2021, Haliburton suffered a left knee injury against the Dallas Mavericks. Although an MRI later revealed no ligament damage, it was announced that he would miss the last seven games of the Kings' 2020–21 season as a precaution. After the season, Haliburton finished third in Rookie of the Year voting and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team.
On January 29, 2022, Haliburton scored his Kings' then-career-high 38 points along with seven assists, three rebounds and two steals in a 103–101 loss against the Philadelphia 76ers. Exactly a week later, in his final game as a King, Haliburton posted a then-career-high 17 assists, along with 13 points, six rebounds and two steals in a 113–103 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
With the trade deadline approaching, the Kings were seeking to acquire a center and held a surplus of point guards. The team had signed De'Aaron Fox to a five-year extension in 2020 to solidify him as the franchise's starting point guard, and later selected Davion Mitchell in the 2021 NBA draft. As a result, Haliburton became Sacramento's best trade asset in efforts to immediately improve the roster and end an NBA-record 16-year playoff drought.
Indiana Pacers (2022–present)
On February 8, 2022, Haliburton, Buddy Hield, and Tristan Thompson were traded to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for Domantas Sabonis, Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. At the time of the trade, Pacers coach Rick Carlisle referred to Haliburton as "an elite young point guard that affects the game positively in many, many ways". Pacers president Kevin Pritchard stated that the team intended on building around Haliburton as its long-term centerpiece. The acquisition was regarded as a steal for the Pacers by Sports Illustrated.
On February 11, Haliburton made his Pacers debut in a 120–113 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, logging 23 points in addition to six assists, three rebounds, and three steals. Five days later, Haliburton recorded 21 points and 14 assists in his first win with the Pacers, defeating the Washington Wizards 113–108. Haliburton participated in the NBA's 2022 Rising Stars Challenge alongside teammate Chris Duarte. Haliburton and Desmond Bane were the winners of the 2022 Clorox Clutch Challenge at the NBA All-Star Weekend.
On March 8, Haliburton scored 25 points in a 127–124 loss to the Cavaliers. He scored another 25 points in a 131–128 loss to the Atlanta Hawks five days later. On March 23, in the first game against his former team, Haliburton recorded 13 points, 15 assists and three steals in a one-point loss to the Sacramento Kings. Five days later, he recorded a 25-point, 13-assist double-double in a loss to the Hawks.
On April 1, Haliburton scored 30 points against the Boston Celtics, but was fouled out in the fourth quarter, leading to a 128–123 loss. Two days later, Haliburton tallied a near triple-double with 19 points, 17 assists, nine rebounds and no turnovers against the Detroit Pistons, recording the most assists in a game by a Pacer since T. J. McConnell in the 2020–21 season. In the 26 games he played for Indiana after the trade deadline, Haliburton averaged 17.5 points and 9.6 assists.
During the offseason, Haliburton worked on improving his game and his chemistry with the rest of the Pacers roster. On November 21, Haliburton was selected Eastern Conference Player of the Week, leading the Pacers to a 3–0 record while averaging 21 points, 11 assists and four rebounds per game. Eight days later, Haliburton became the first player in NBA history to record 40-plus assists and no turnovers in a three-game stretch, averaging 20 points, 13.3 assists, six rebounds and 2.3 steals per game. On December 23, Haliburton made a game-winning three-pointer and finished with a then-career-high 43 points on a Pacers franchise-record 10 three-pointers along with seven assists in a 121–118 victory over the Miami Heat.
National team career
Haliburton played for the United States at the 2019 FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Heraklion, Greece. On June 30, 2019, he scored a team-high 21 points, shooting 8-of-9 from the field, in a 102–84 group-stage win over Lithuania. Haliburton averaged 7.9 points and a tournament-leading 6.9 assists per game while shooting 69 percent from the field. He led the United States to a gold medal and was named to the all-tournament team's All-Star Five.
Haliburton was named to the 2021 USA Men's Select Team, working directly with the US Olympic Men's Basketball Team during training camp in Las Vegas, Nevada prior to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. At the 2020 Olympics, the U.S. men's team was crowned champions for the 16th time.
Haliburton was selected to represent the United States Men's National Team at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Pasay, Philippines, at Mall of Asia Arena. Across eight games, Haliburton averaged 8.6 points, 5.6 assists, three rebounds, 1.5 steals, 1.1 blocks, shooting 51% from the field and 47% from three-point range in 21.5 minutes per game off the bench. He led the team in steals and assists, helping the United States to a fourth-place finish that qualified the team for the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Haliburton was later named to the 2024 Olympic team. He made his first Olympic appearance during a preliminary round win against South Sudan, recording six points and an assist on 2-3 three point shooting. Team USA would go on to win the gold medal in a rematch against France.
Player profile
Haliburton is a point guard who stands 6 feet 5 inches (1.96 m) tall and weighs 185 pounds (84 kg). Basketball writers have noted Haliburton as both an elite and high-volume three-point shooter. Despite this, Haliburton possesses a visually awkward shooting form described as "kooky" and "an almost embarrassing motion". Louisa Thomas of The New Yorker detailed Haliburton's ability to "skitter past" defenders, before jerking into a quick shot characterized by an "akimbo" right elbow set up by his use of "odd footwork, jabbing almost randomly".
Already the main distributor as his team's point guard, passing opportunities are further opened up for him due to his reputation as a perimeter threat. His Pacers teams, particularly in 2025, were known to play a considerably fast pace of play, with Haliburton directing their offense. In the 2025 NBA playoffs, after hitting multiple game-winning shots, analysts began to widely consider Haliburton as one of the most clutch players in the league.
Awards and honors
NBA
2× NBA All-Star: 2023, 2024
2× All-NBA Third Team: 2024, 2025
NBA Cup All-Tournament Team: 2023
NBA All-Rookie First Team: 2021
NBA assists leader: 2024
USA Basketball
Olympics gold medalist: 2024
FIBA Under-19 World Cup gold medalist: 2019
FIBA Under-19 Basketball World Cup All-Tournament Team: 2019
Career statistics
Personal life
Haliburton is a cousin of former basketball player Eddie Jones, who had a 14-year NBA career and was a three-time NBA All-Star. He is also the cousin of current Orlando Magic player Jalen Suggs. Haliburton has developed a friendship with Caitlin Clark, a fellow basketball player in the Indiana market; Clark plays for the WNBA's Indiana Fever.
Haliburton is a Christian. In 2024, he said, "My faith has grown a lot over the last year or two. Growing up we didn't go to church a lot, but we understood God's place in our lives. Now that I'm an adult I guess—I own a house now and live on my own—I go to church on Sunday every chance I can. I go to chapel before games."
Haliburton had been dating Jade Jones, who was a classmate of his and a cheerleader at Iowa State, since 2019. On July 28, 2025, it was announced that Haliburton and Jones got engaged. They couple married in July 2026.