Haliburton on Whether the NBA Is Rigged: "If that were the case, the Knicks would have reached the Finals"

The last season of the NBA was one of the most surprising in recent years. Everything that happened in the playoffs, except for Oklahoma City Thunder's championship, was striking. The standout performance was from Indiana Pacers, who led by Tyrese Haliburton made it to the Finals. That's precisely why Hali himself doesn't believe the competition is rigged.

In recent months, there has been much talk about the NBA being scripted. This would explain the surreal trade of Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers from the Dallas Mavericks. It's said that Adam Silver persuaded the Mavs to send their star to a Los Angeles franchise that is the most media-centric in the league. Addressing audience issues with the Lakers competing for the ring again.

To add to the intrigue, after that trade, the Dallas Mavericks secured the 2025 NBA Draft pick 1 when they had less than a 2% chance. With it, they chose Cooper Flagg, one of the most highly anticipated rookies of the century. And to top it off, the Wembanyama Spurs got pick 2, and the Philadelphia 76ers the third. Two teams that will be competing for everything in the coming years.

Tyrese Haliburton himself decided to respond with humor and realism to those speculations during his appearance on Logan Paul's podcast, "Impaulsive".

"I play for the Indiana Pacers. If the NBA were really fixing results, the last two teams they would favor would be Indiana and Oklahoma City. From the league and market perspective, we are too small. Besides, traveling to those places is complicated; they are not easy destinations. If the NBA wanted to fix something, it would be for the Knicks to succeed," said the Indiana star.

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Indiana's feat in 2025

Haliburton's words have a clear undertone. Against all odds, the Pacers had a historic playoffs:

• They eliminated the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.

• They overcame the Cleveland Cavaliers in the semifinals.

• And finally, astonished the world by beating the New York Knicks, a team with a much bigger media presence and the perfect narrative to reach the Finals.

Indiana thus found themselves in the title fight against the Oklahoma City Thunder, who were coming off a dream year led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

The story could have been even more epic. The Pacers took the Thunder to a decisive seventh game, in a final that became one of the most exciting of the past decade. However, in the first quarter of the match, Haliburton suffered an Achilles tendon rupture, a devastating blow for both him and the franchise.

Without their leader on the court, Indiana couldn't withstand OKC's final push, who ended up lifting the Larry O'Brien trophy. The Pacers were left with the bitter feeling of being one step away from making history, shattered by their star's injury.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Haliburton, sobre si la NBA está amañada: "Si fuese así, los Knicks habrían llegado a las Finales"