Is Haliburton More Horry-fic Than Horry?

Holy smokes!!! Or should I say, holy Hali. For the 4th consecutive playoff series, Tyrese Haliburton has hit the game-winning or tying buzzer-beater, to eke out a 111-110 come-from-behind win for the Indiana Pacers in Game 1 of the NBA championship against a heavily-favored Oklahoma City Thunder. What a compelling thrill-of-a-win that was.

Haliburton’s heroics reminds me of Robert Horry, the original buzzer-beater specialist of decades ago. Big Shot Bob, as he was fondly called, had a knack for clutch shots, burying 3-pointers in important playoff games. Horry was a 7-time NBA champion, one of only 4 players to have won championships with 3 different teams. Horry won his NBA title rings with the Houston Rockets (1994 and 1995), the Los Angeles Lakers (2000, 2001, 2002), and the San Antonio Spurs (2005 and 2007). Horry was a clutch artist who holds the distinction as the only player to have won more than 6 championships other than those who were with the dominant Boston Celtics team of the 60s.

But Haliburton’s insane string of 4 consecutive playoff series buzzer-beaters definitely tops Big Shot Bob’s. Hali has definitely out-Horried Horry in this magical playoff series. This has got to be the greatest, best-ever individual clutch shooting in the NBA. Ever!

The Indiana Pacers never led, were never in control of the game, and had once again dug themselves a 15-point deficit with 9 minutes left in the 4th quarter of the game. And once again, they cut that lead slowly, patiently, and without panicking. Down by 11 at the 8-minute mark. Down by 9 with 2:52 minutes to go with the score at 99-108.

And then they let loose that patented Pacer pressure. Limiting the Thunder to a mere 2 points in the last 2 minutes of play.

Complementing that with another string of unlikely, hail-Mary threes. And finally capping that with another last second Haliburton hurried, harried, Horrific heave, to snatch the win 111-110. Coming from a 99-108 deficit.

Think about this: the Pacers never led until the last .03 seconds to go. And that was all that mattered. What matters is not how much you dominate the game, it’s how you end it. And the doggedly-determined Pacers just knew how to end it with an emphatic W.

The Pacers – and holy Hali – are making a habit of coming from behind and entertaining us with some thrilling, mind-boggling wins in this year’s playoffs. That’s the stuff that could break the confidence of weaker foes. Perhaps the cage gods above are conspiring to wow us with these heart-stopping shows. Perhaps they’re telling us that small market Finals like these could be just as exciting – or even much more so – than big market or big star events.

Against the imposing Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 5 of the first round, the Bucks led 118-111 with 34 seconds left in overtime. Tyrese scored the go-ahead goal with 1.3 seconds to steal the win 119-118.

Against the sweet-shooting Donovan Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2 of the 2nd round, the Cavs led 119-112 with 48 seconds left. Tyrese drilled a looping 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left to squeeze another cardiac win 120-119.

Against the wily Jalen Brunson and the New York Knicks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Knicks led 121-112 with 51 seconds left on the clock. Tyrese let loose a hail-Mary 2 pointer at the buzzer to tie the count at 125-all, forcing an overtime. The Pacers would eventually beat a dazed Knick team into submission 138-135 in the overtime period.

That was 3 consecutive playoff series featuring Tyrese’ buzzer-beaters. (Pls watch: The Pacers 3 Epic Comebacks…)

And now… it is Game 1 of the NBA championship, and Tyrese once again detonates another buzzer-beating bomb. Surely, the Thunder have seen the Pacer’s distinct endgame pressure. Surely, they have prepared their counter-moves for such. Still, the Pacers were able to execute their relentless comeback. Still, Tyrese drops his winning basket like it’s another day in the office. Simply incredible. Could it be that the cage gods have willed this so?

Tyrese’ glorious buzzer-beater run will probably go down in history as the greatest ever in the history of the sport. This will long be remembered as the buzzer-beaters that shook this season’s playoffs. And this will be viewed and studied intensely in the future by cage pundits. Miracles do happen. But in bunches of four? It’s gotta be magic!

But here’s the catch. All that ecstatic feeling goes down the drain if, at the end of it all, the Pacers do not win the coveted NBA title. The underdog Indiana Pacers will need to follow through with 3 more wins in order to make those crazy magical comebacks worth revisiting. Without that, you lose the satisfaction from all those great insane, heart-stopping memories.

For a closer look, just click on the photos. Cover photo courtesy of GMA Network. Other photos courtesy of The Oklahoman, Wiadomosci.com, OptaAnalyst, Inquirer.net, USA Today, WNFL Sports, Sports Illustrated and KOCO. Video courtesy of YouTube.