This could have been worse.
The Pacers officially announced that star point guard Tyrese Haliburton “underwent an MRI this morning, which confirmed a left hamstring strain.” However, this is a Grade 1 strain and Haliburton will be re-evaluated in two weeks, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN filling in the details on the injury.
That should be a relief for the Pacers and their fans, because it looked much worse when it happened. Haliburton was driving the lane on the Celtics’ Derrick White when his foot slipped, leading Haliburton to go down and essentially did the splits. He instantly grabbed his left hamstring and ultimately had to be carried off the court.
Tyrese Haliburton goes down and is carried back to the locker room pic.twitter.com/1upm4HlhFg
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) January 9, 2024
The time missed for a Grade 1 strain is usually around two weeks, reports NBA injury expert Jeff Stotts of In Street Clothes.
Haliburton has been a breakout star at the heart of an entertaining and better-than-expected Pacers team. He is the leading vote-getter from fans among East All-Star guards and is averaging 24.2 points and 12.7 assists a game while shooting 40.4% from 3.
Look for coach Rick Carlisle to lean into veteran T.J. McConnell to handle Haliburton’s minutes, but more will also fall on Andrew Nembhard. The Pacers, 21-15, and in a clump of five teams with the same record ranked 4-8 in the Eastern Conference. The Pacers must keep in touch with this group while Haliburton is out.
