It was the kind of moment that makes a whole city go quiet. Game 7. NBA Finals. June 22, 2025. Tyrese Haliburton, the guy who basically breathed life back into Indiana basketball, drives to the hoop in the first quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder. He plants. Then, he’s down. No contact. Just that sickening "pop" sensation that every athlete fears more than anything else.
If you're looking for the latest Tyrese Haliburton injury report, the reality is still pretty tough. He tore his right Achilles tendon. Honestly, it was a brutal ending to what had been a magical run for the Pacers. One minute they’re three wins away from a ring, and the next, their franchise cornerstone is being helped off the floor.
Since then, the news hasn't exactly been a rollercoaster—it’s been a long, slow climb. On July 7, 2025, the team officially confirmed what everyone suspected: Haliburton would miss the entire 2025-26 season. We're now halfway through January 2026, and the Pacers are sitting at a dismal 9-31. It turns out that replacing a guy who averages 20 and 10 isn't something you just do with "next man up" clichés.
The Long Road Back from an Achilles Tear
Achilles injuries aren't like ankle sprains. You don't just "tough it out." For a player like Tyrese, whose game is built on sudden bursts, stop-and-start dribbling, and transition speed, the rehab is basically a full-time job.
He’s been working mostly in isolation. While the rest of the team was out on vacation or starting training camp, Haliburton was in the Pacers’ practice facility doing monotonous calf raises and pool work. He told The Athletic recently that it got "sad after some time" because he was just in the gym by himself. You've got to feel for the guy. Imagine going from the highest possible stage in basketball to struggling to walk across a living room.
His fiancée, Jade Jones, hasn't sugarcoated it either. She recently mentioned how the first few months were the hardest because Tyrese simply doesn't know how to sit still. He’s a "happy human being," as she put it, but watching your team struggle from the sidelines while you're learning how to put weight on your heel again is a mental grind.
Why this hit the Pacers so hard
The timing was just cruel. Usually, a team loses their star and they have an offseason to pivot. But this happened at the tail end of June. The draft was basically over, free agency was looming, and suddenly the Pacers went from "Finals Contender" to "Lottery Bound."
- Pascal Siakam has been trying to hold things together, averaging about 23 points, but the playmaking is gone.
- Andrew Nembhard has stepped into the lead guard role, but he’s not Haliburton. Nobody is.
- The Standings: Indiana is near the bottom of the East, and they’ve been one of the worst road teams in the league (1-16 at one point).
The January 2026 Update: Is There Light?
Wait, there’s actually some good news. A few days ago, right before a game against the Boston Celtics, a video surfaced of Haliburton on the court. He wasn't just sitting there. He was moving. He was shooting. He looked... well, he looked like Tyrese.
The internet basically exploded. Fans were dissecting the clip like it was the Zapruder film, looking at how he landed on his right foot. He’s definitely progressing. He’s out of the walking boot, obviously, and he’s moved into the "basketball activities" phase of rehab.
Does this mean a surprise return this season? No. The Pacers have been very clear that they aren't risking a 25-year-old’s entire career for a season that’s already lost. The focus is 100% on the 2026-27 season. But seeing him move with some fluidity is a massive psychological win for a fanbase that has had a really rough six months.
What Most People Get Wrong About This Injury
A lot of people blamed the workload. They looked at the 82-game season and the deep playoff run and said, "His body just gave out." But Haliburton himself went on The Pat McAfee Show and called it "bad luck."
He’d been dealing with a calf issue during the Finals—which we all knew—but he says there’s no direct "A leads to B" evidence that the calf caused the Achilles tear. It was a freak occurrence. Interestingly, he’s been talking to other guys who’ve been through it—Kevin Durant, Dejounte Murray, and even Jayson Tatum (who actually tore his Achilles in that same 2025 playoff window).
The "Brotherhood" of the Injured
It’s sort of wild how many stars went down last year. You've got Haliburton, Tatum, and Damian Lillard all rehabbing major injuries at the same time. Tyrese mentioned that they’ve formed a bit of a support group. It helps to talk to someone who knows exactly what it feels like when your leg just stops working.
What’s Next for Tyrese and the Pacers?
So, where do we go from here? The Tyrese Haliburton injury report isn't going to change much for the next few months. He’s going to keep shooting, keep getting his strength back, and keep being the world's highest-paid cheerleader on the bench.
For the Pacers, the strategy is basically "Operation: High Draft Pick." With the 2026 rookie class looking stacked, Indiana might end up with a top-three pick to pair with a healthy Haliburton next year. It’s a silver lining, even if it’s a pretty thin one.
Practical Steps to Follow the Recovery:
- Watch the Pre-Game Warmups: The Pacers often post clips of Tyrese shooting before home games. This is where you'll see his lateral movement improve first.
- Monitor the "Hali 1" Launch: Despite the injury, his marketing with PUMA is still moving. Sometimes his shoe promos give more insight into his mobility than the official team reports.
- Check the 10-Month Mark: April 2026 will be ten months since the surgery. That’s usually the window where "full speed" practice starts being discussed.
The reality is that Tyrese Haliburton is the future of this franchise. Taking it slow right now is the only smart move, even if it makes for a miserable winter of basketball in Indianapolis. If he comes back at 100% in October 2026, nobody is going to remember the losses from this January.
Keep an eye on the official Pacers injury designations, but don't expect his name to leave the "Out" column until the 2026 training camp starts. The goal is a healthy Achilles and another run at the Finals, not a rushed return for a lottery team. Luck eventually turns, and Indiana is due for some.
Check the Pacers' official X account (formerly Twitter) for those practice clips—they're the most honest updates we're getting right now.