WEDNESDAY, June 25, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton tore his right Achilles tendon during the team’s loss in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the team confirmed.

The injury happened with about five minutes left in the first quarter. Haliburton was driving to the basket when he suddenly collapsed to the ground. 

He began slamming the floor in pain, seemingly aware of the serious injury, NBC News reported.

Haliburton had already been playing through a right calf strain, which he suffered in Game 5.

“I want to be on the floor, and if I have the ability to, if I can — like I said, if I can walk, I want to be out there,” Haliburton said after Game 6. “I just want to be out there with my brothers to compete.”

By the end of the game, cameras showed Haliburton using crutches as he met his teammates following their 103-91 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

“What happened with Tyrese, all of our hearts dropped. But he will be back,” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said.

Carlisle praised the 25-year-old for his playoff performance, calling it “one of the great individual playoff runs in the history of the NBA with dramatic play after dramatic play.”

Haliburton appeared in 23 playoff games this year. He averaged 17.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 8.6 assists per game, NBC News said.

He led several big comebacks, including a dramatic game-tying shot in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals and a game-winning shot with just 0.3 seconds left in Game 1 of the Finals.

Haliburton is under contract with the Pacers through 2029. His recovery timeline has not yet been shared, but Achilles injuries often take several months to heal.

More information

The Cleveland Clinic has more on an achilles tendon rupture.

SOURCE: NBC News, June 23, 2025