Atypical circumstance leads to atypical performance in Indiana Pacers loss to Sacramento Kings

The Indiana Pacers looked off on Wednesday night in a story-filled game.

SACRAMENTO — Wednesday night, the Sacramento Kings took on the Indiana Pacers in a game that had too many storylines to court.

Tyrese Haliburton was playing in Sacramento for the first time since being traded during his second NBA season. The young guard was drafted by the Kings in 2020 and loved the franchise, but he was dealt to Indiana in a high-profile trade in February. Wednesday was his first time back playing in front of the Sacramento faithful as well as his first opportunity to see old friends and teammates. It was bound to be an emotional day for the 22-year old.

"We're forever linked, no matter what happens," Haliburton said of the Pacers and Kings franchises early in the day. "Being back here will bring some added juice to the game."

Buddy Hield was in a similar situation. Hield played against the Kings as a rookie with the New Orleans Pelicans, but he spent the next five years of his career with Sacramento. He was involved in the same trade as Haliburton, and on this day, he would play in the City of Trees for the first time as a member of the Pacers.

"Looking forward to the matchup. Just come out there and try to play Pacers basketball," Hield said at Indiana's shootaround. He added that he and the team were trying to treat it as a normal game.

Opposite the guards was Domantas Sabonis, who is the starting center for the Kings. The bruising big man was an All-Star twice with the Pacers during his career, and he was sent to Sacramento in the trade that netted Indiana Hield and Haliburton. For the first time since his rookie season and the first time since he emerged as one of the NBA's best players, Sabonis would get to go against the blue and gold.

All three players noted that the game would have fanfare, but they all stated the same message — it's just another game. And it's possible, if not likely, that they all wanted that to be the case. In a typical game, it's easier to focus and play the way that you want.

But it was impossible for that to be the case, both from a human nature perspective and because of the environment of the game. With so many relationships, both between the two teams and with the crowd, this game was not just going to be routine.

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Pacers guard T.J. McConnell remembers his first game against his former team. He spent the first four years of his career with the Philadelphia 76ers before joining Indiana. When he returned to Philly, he received a standing ovation.

Fittingly, his return to the City of Brotherly Love took place three years to the day prior to this Kings-Pacers battle. It was November 30, 2019. "I feel like there were a lot of emotions the first time I went back," McConnell remembered in a conversation with AllPacers on Wednesday. He noted the same thing that Haliburton, Hield, and Sabonis said before this game — he tried to treat it like any other game, and he tried to give that advice to Buddy and Tyrese.

But it wasn't easy for him back then. "As a human being, it's hard to look past that with all the emotions," he said. "It's tough. From a professional standpoint, you just gotta try to do the best you can."

That would be the task for the three players who were set up for an emotional game on Wednesday. For Haliburton, it was his first game ever against a former team, and in a city he had come to love. That isn't easy to gloss over, even if that is the goal.

And the environment of the arena made it impossible. The media contingent covering this game was large, meaning that there were cameras everywhere. Rapper 50 Cent was in attendance as his alcohol brand, Sire Spirits, was now being sold in the Golden 1 Center. Before anything happened in the arena, there was already a buzz.

During warmups before the game, there were Haliburton and Hield jerseys everywhere. Both players signed a few autographs, and Haliburton's family arrived about an hour before the game was set to begin. Sabonis, meanwhile, prepared for the game in his new home on the opposite end of the court. Staffers from each team chatted with the players. The relationships made warmups unusual.

Buddy Hield - also popular guy: pic.twitter.com/UznS9qx5lJ

— Tony East (@TonyREast) December 1, 2022

It was a country-themed game that had a short concert by Ashley Cooke at halftime. Because of the theme, Pacers players were introduced as starters with a banjo tune playing. Then, the banjo stopped. It was time for Haliburton and Hield to be introduced to the crowd.

"A 6-5 guard from Iowa State, ladies and gentlemen please welcome, Tyrese Haliburton!"

The Sacramento crowd stood and cheered.

"And a 6-4 two guard from Oklahoma, your franchise leader in three pointers, number 24, Buddy Hield!"

Then, boos.

The player introductions set the tone for the night. The fans loved Haliburton and didn't care for Hield. Both guys, as well as Sabonis, can try as hard as they can to make the game a typical one. But after introductions like that, it's not going to be easy.

As the game went on, it became even more difficult. Hield was met with a chorus of boos every single time he touched the ball, and he ended up having a turnover and missing his first three shots in the opening four minutes of action.

It may have been a result of the game plan, but it appeared at times that Hield was hunting his shot. He's a talented scorer, and he finished with 17 points on 13 looks, so that by itself isn't a bad thing. But it is reflective of the story that the game was telling. Entering the game, Hield held the ball for an average of 2.06 seconds every time he touched it throughout the season. On Wednesday, that number was 2.39. Hield put extra time and effort into his touches as he looked to score while hearing the songs of the boo birds.

"I didn't give a shit, I go to sleep happy," Buddy Hield said of getting booed. "I felt good coming into the game, I just missed some good opportunities."

Haliburton never got comfortable either. That may have been a result of the Kings' defensive gameplan more than the environment of the arena, though. Haliburton routinely saw two defenders, and Sacramento guard Malik Monk detailed a simple part of the Kings strategy after the game.

"[De'Aaron] Fox did a great job of forcing him left," Monk said after the final buzzer. "When he gets right, he can do anything. Shoot the ball, score the ball, pass the ball, he's great going right. Not as efficient going left."

Haliburton felt the defensive focus. "I had some really stupid turnovers, missed some shots," he said. "They capitalized on that."

Between facing defensive pressure and the game being so atypical, Haliburton did not play up to his standards. He was frustrated with his errors and inability to get to the free throw line. He finished with nine points, it was just the second time this season that he finished with fewer than ten. And he made only four shots, which was his second-lowest total this year. The Kings defended him as well as any team has.

Sabonis, meanwhile, started strong in front of a home crowd. The Lithuanian big man had seven points, six rebounds, four assists, and one steal in just the first quarter, and despite foul trouble he never looked back. He cruised to a double-double and added seven assists. The ex-Pacer was tremendous.

"We wanted to do it for Domas," Kings forward Keegan Murray said after the game.

Sacramento put on a show for the crowd of 17,000+ and dominated the game. They were up by more than 30 points at times and went on to win 137-114. Most of the big names in this game didn't each touch the court in the fourth quarter as the game was already decided. The Kings were the better team, and it wasn't close.

After the game, Haliburton, Hield, and Sabonis all gravitated to mid court for a session of high fives and hugs with former teammates and coaches. They're all still close, and many of them went to dinner and events with guys they used to share a locker room with the night before. The trade created no animosity.

But it did create a loud and grueling environment, and the Pacers never responded. Maybe the trade, and the human emotions involved, had an impact on the team. The results certainly suggest that those things played a factor. Maybe they didn't, and the Kings were just significantly better on this night. But either way, it was an atypical game, and Indiana was outclassed.

"Maybe. I don't know man, we just missed some shots," Haliburton said when he was asked if the environment impacted the way his team played. Indiana was inaccurate on 60 shots, the second-most misses they have had in one game this year.

This was as close to a playoff game atmosphere as there can be in a regular season. The Pacers, who are young and haven't reached the postseason in two years, needed to experience a game like that. They were humiliated by the Kings, but that environment will beneficial the blue and gold long term.

And now, the first game in Sacramento is out of the way for Haliburton. There's only one each season for the Pacers, so they won't carry the same weight going forward. He did appreciate the reception from fans despite his off night.

"It meant a lot," he said. "I've said multiple times what this place means to me, what these people mean to me."

Then, he was asked about the trade and how it linked the two franchises. "It's going to be here my whole career... That's just going to be connected to me forever," the 22-year old said. As long as Haliburton and Sabonis are involved, games featuring the Pacers and Kings will carry extra juice. Next time, Indiana will hope to do better. This time, though, the extra storylines that came with the game made it a battle unlike any that this current, younger Pacers team had seen.

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