After nearly 16 months, Tyrese Haliburton is back.
The Pacers star has already suited up in the preseason for Indiana, but he’s preparing for his official return to action when Indiana opens the season on Oct. 21.
Despite missing so much time after tearing his Achilles, Haliburton is making it clear he isn’t just returning to have fun. Winning is very much on Haliburton’s mind, particularly after the devastation of going down in Game 7 of the NBA Finals.
Here’s what Haliburton had to say about his return and his championship aspirations in Indiana.
Tyrese Haliburton opens up about Pacers return
Haliburton told ESPN’s Jamal Collier that his goal remains a championship, even after so much time away from the court.
“I have my own internal expectations,” Haliburton said. “But our goal is to win a championship. That has never wavered.”
The Pacers came one win away from a title in 2025, only to lose Game 7 after Haliburton tore his Achilles in Oklahoma City. The game was only seven minutes old when Haliburton went down.
During time off, Haliburton said he developed “different perspective on life” as he watched from the sideline.
“I’m just thankful to be playing basketball again and to be doing all the different things that I can do in the community because when something like that happens, it’s like your life flashes before your eyes,” Haliburton told ESPN.
Haliburton explained that he spent time watching his highlights while recovering.
“Just to feel something,” he said. “I once could do that. I miss that feeling.”
The Pacers enter the season projected to be much better than they were last season, when they won just 19 games, but they generally aren’t projected to be a top team in an increasingly crowded Eastern Conference.
“You can take [our preseason rankings] as disrespect, but at the same time, you got to understand we put ourselves in that position by the way we played last year,” Haliburton said. “There’s standards that we didn’t meet that we got to get back to.”
MORE: Watch Pacers games during 2026-27 season with DAZN
When did Tyrese Haliburton tear his Achilles?
Haliburton suffered a torn Achilles in the first half of Game 7 of the NBA Finals on June 22, 2025. The Pacers open their season a day shy of 16 months since the injury.
Indiana quickly ruled Haliburton out for the entire 2025-26 season after the injury was confirmed. Any return wouldn’t have been possible until the very end of the regular season, and even then it would’ve been an uphill climb.
With 16 months to recover, however, Haliburton is believed to be fully healthy with no limitations.
