Pacers News: Tyrese Haliburton Facing Early Struggles From Beyond the Arc

Will Haliburton's shooting improve?

Eva Geitheim | 3 Hours Ago

Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

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Indiana Pacers

The early season struggles of All-NBA Indiana Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton have been well documented as he has fallen short of matching his output on the court from the two seasons prior.

Haliburton's production and efficiency has dropped in nearly every category this season. He is down from averaging over 20 points per game last season to averaging just 16.1 points per game this season. He has scored 20 or more points in a game this season just three times, and is shooting a career-low 38.3 percent from the field. Haliburton has shot above 45 percent in every season in his career.

One specific area Haliburton is particularly struggling is shooting three-pointers. Haliburton is currently making 28.8 percent of his three-point attempts, which ranks last in the NBA among players who have attempted at least 100 three pointers this season. No other player that qualifies is hitting less than 30 percent of their three-pointers.

Lowest 3P%, 100+ attempts: pic.twitter.com/bZNcfNsUkS
— Taco Trey Kerby (@treykerby) November 19, 2024

Over the first four seasons of his career, hitting three-pointers was a strength of Haliburton's. He made at least 40 percent of his threes through his first four seasons, and though that number dipped to 36.4 percent a season ago, he still was significantly more efficient than he has been this year.

So far, Haliburton has not hit more than four three-pointers in a game this season, something he did on plenty of occasions a season ago. For Haliburton to increase his production, hitting more threes and taking better shots should help.

The good news for Haliburton and the Pacers is that there are only four teams in the Eastern Conference that have winning records. The Pacers are 6-8, but they are far from out of contention thanks to an uncompetitive conference. However, the Pacers cannot afford to continue on their current trajectory. They've already fallen from top four in the conference to eighth, and will continue to drop further down the standings if cannot find some consistency.

Even if the Pacers do land a spot in the playoffs or the play-in tournament, they will need to see improvement from Haliburton to have a shot at another deep run in the postseason. There is still plenty of time before that point