Pacers' Guard Tyrese Haliburton: 'I'm 100%' With No Restrictions

Tyrese Haliburtondidn't wait for the first question. When the Indiana Pacerspoint guard took his seat at the team's media day on Monday, Sept. 28, he opened by settling the one topic everyone in the room had come to ask about: his health.

"I am healthy. I'm 100%. There will be no restrictions," Haliburton said, adding with a grin that reporters wouldn't need anonymous sources for this one. "I am the source."

For a franchise that spent an entire season without its best player, those words may be the most important of the preseason.

A Long Road Back From the Finals

Haliburton's last competitive minutes came in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals, when he tore his Achilles tendon on the sport's biggest stage. The injury wiped out his entire 2025–26 campaign, and the Pacers endured a difficult year without the playmaker who had steered them to the championship round.

The recovery wasn't a straight line, either. Along the way, Haliburton was hit with a case of shingles that set back his rehabilitation and added another layer of frustration to an already grueling process. All told, roughly 15 months have passed since he last played in a game that counted.

Keeping Receipts on the Doubters

If anyone expected Haliburton to return with a quiet, low-key attitude, he quickly dispelled that notion. The 26-year-old openly admitted that he tracks every negative take about himself and his team, and that his time on the sideline produced plenty of them.

He described his phone's screenshots and his saved social media posts as overflowing with criticism, from questions about whether he could ever regain his All-Star level to skepticism about whether Indiana could still be taken seriously as a contender. Rather than bristling at it, he framed all of it as fuel. The way he sees it, the Pacers as a group now have no shortage of bulletin-board material heading into the season.

That chip on his shoulder has already shown up once this offseason. Last month, Haliburton voiced his surprise after learning that his return in Indiana's season opener wouldn't be broadcast on national television.

Title Expectations With Zubac in the Fold

Haliburton isn't easing into modest goals. He said he expects the Pacers to be in the hunt for an NBA championship again, pointing to the addition of center Ivica Zubac, whom Indiana acquired at last season's trade deadline, as a key piece alongside the team's established core.

The pairing, however, remains entirely theoretical for now. Zubac arrived while Haliburton was still sidelined, so the two have yet to share the floor in a real game. How quickly their chemistry develops, particularly in pick-and-roll actions that have long been central to Haliburton's game, will be one of the storylines to watch early in the year.

Signs of Progress on the Court

There is some evidence to back up Haliburton's confidence. In recent weeks he has been playing full 5-on-5 against teammates and team staff, a meaningful step beyond individual drills. He also shared a video on social media of himself throwing down a between-the-legs dunk, an emphatic way of showing that his explosiveness has returned.

Still, Haliburton acknowledged that the process demanded more than physical healing. He spoke of needing to rebuild his sense of himself as a player. One of the moments that told him he was truly back was a small one: taking a routine fall in practice without the entire gym holding its breath. When the room no longer reacted, he said, he finally felt normal again.

What Comes Next for Indiana

For all the reassurance, the real verdict will come once the games begin. Haliburton seemed to recognize that no amount of talking at a podium can replace what fans and critics will see with their own eyes.

"I feel great. I can only say it so many times," he said, making clear he's eager to let his play do the rest.

If his health holds and his form returns, the Pacers could quickly reestablish themselves among the Eastern Conference's top teams. And if the doubters he's been cataloging turn out to be wrong, Haliburton will surely have the screenshots ready.