Days after raving about Tyrese Haliburton, ESPN pundit changes tune deeming Game 5 showing ‘unacceptable’

After putting on one of the best playoff performances in recent NBA history, Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton struggled mightily in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals on Thursday. The former All-Star scored just eight points in the 111-94 loss at Madison Square Garden. His poor outing had Jay Williams criticizing him just days after singing his praises.

Haliburton has been one of the better players in this year’s postseason, but the New York Knicks shut him down in Game 5. The 25-year-old took just seven shots in 32 minutes, unable to get open throughout the game. Williams, who provides analysis for ESPN, pointed out his lack of motivation to score as one of the main reasons why the Pacers offense never got going.

Williams discussed Haliburton’s performance on Friday’s episode of “First Take” alongside Molly Qerim, Stephen A. Smith and Brian Windhorst.

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"It was unacceptable last night," Williams said about Haliburton's performance. "I sent a tweet out last night saying 'How do we not look at the basket?'"

Williams went on to give credit to the Knicks' defense, but emphasized that the bulk of the blame lies on Haliburton's shoulders. The Pacers point guard leads the way for his team, but a slow start doomed them and resulted in a blowout loss on the road.

After his 32-point, 15-assist, 12-rebound masterclass in Game 4, Williams and other analysts on ESPN deemed Haliburton a superstar. Williams still believes that Indiana's leader is deserving of that label, but needs to be aggressive and avoid performances like Game 5 if he wants to lead the Pacers to the NBA Finals.

The Pacers depend on Tyrese Haliburton's aggression to succeed

Indiana came alive in the second half of the season, largely thanks to Haliburton returning to his former glory after a rough start. The pace at which the Pacers play and the firepower of their offense is run through their point guard, who acts as the offensive hub as he runs down the floor. They are at their best when their primary playmaker is looking for his own shot as well as distributing.

During the regular season, the Indiana Pacers were 25-3 when their leader scored at least 20 points. Haliburton continued that trend into the playoffs, putting up big numbers and guiding Indiana to dramatic wins. When he is solely looking to pass the ball, though, Indiana's offense becomes slower and less effective.

Despite the ugly loss in Game 5, the Pacers are still up 3-2 in the series and have a chance to finish the Knicks off at home in Game 6 on Saturday.

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Zachary Howell

Zachary Howell is an NBA and WNBA journalist at Sportskeeda with a degree in Broadcast and Digital Journalism from Syracuse University and over a year of experience in the field.

Being introduced to the digital side of content inspired Zachary to become a writer, and his love of basketball made this an obvious transition.

His favorite team is the OKC Thunder, and Zachary started following them in 2011 when they were on the rise with Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden. His favorite basketball players from the past are Tim Duncan, Michael Jordan and Shaquille O'Neal. Those three came to define their eras of basketball and were dominant without beating their chests too much. Zachary is a big fan of quiet greatness and these three players are good embodiments of that.

When not writing or watching sports, Zachary enjoys reading and exercising, as well as gaming. He loves to be outside and spend time with friends and family, including his three dogs.

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