Pacers' Pascal Siakam Gets Real About Tyrese Haliburton's Early Season Struggles

Can Haliburton turn his performance around this season?

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The 2024-25 NBA season has not started the way the Indiana Pacers and Tyrese Haliburton likely anticipated coming off of an appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals last spring. The Pacers and Haliburton had cemented themselves as the breakout team and player of the NBA, but have fallen short of those standards early on this year.

The Pacers are 7-10 through the start of the 2024-25 NBA season, and Haliburton's play has dropped in multiple categories and statistics.

Over the first 17 games, Haliburton has averaged 15.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 8.5 per game. Haliburton did play better on Sunday in the Pacers' 115-103 win over the Washington Wizards, recording 21 points, four rebounds, and nine assists.

As a whole though, Haliburton has not been as accurate or as explosive of a player as he was last season. Haliburton has scored 20 or more points in just four games this season and is shooting a career-low 30.7 percent on 3-pointers.

Pascal Siakam, who currently leads in the team in scoring by averaging 20.9 points per game, said he wants the team to keep supporting Haliburton through this slump.

"I just want to make sure I tell him that we're all with him," Siakam said, via Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star. "I'm with him. It's not all on him. He doesn't have to feel like all of this is on him. It's all of us. We're not playing well as a team. It's not on Ty. And just not putting so much pressure on makes and misses. ... Just play the game. It's all gonna balance out."

Siakam does believe that Haliburton will shoot more accurately at some point, and simply take off some of the pressure on all his misses.

"It's gonna happen," Siakam said. "The work is done. He puts so much work in. He's there in the gym every single day. He has a good spirit. He plays for his teammates. The work is done. The makes and misses are gonna happen. It is what it is. For me, that's what I try to tell him. Just don't put so much pressure on every shot."

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