Hali Is Back, And That’s Bigger Than A Preseason Box Score

I genuinely don’t give a fuck that Tyrese Haliburton only scored seven points in this game. That ain’t what I was looking for. It’s been 472 days since the Achilles injury in Game 7 of the 2025 Finals, and his first game back happens at Iowa State, where all of this shit started for him. He got that welcome from the crowd, put seven points and six assists on the board in 16 minutes, knocked down a three and even blocked two shots. All 16 minutes came in the first half, so we’re not about to judge his conditioning off a full-game workload he didn’t have. Indiana beat Minnesota 123-112, but the whole story to me is that Hali got to come back on his own terms, and the Pacers got to see their offense with its actual point guard again. Minnesota gave us stuff to look at too. Ant had 19 with four threes, LaMelo had 14 and seven assists, so the two dudes we were excited about in their opener are still worth watching together. The Wolves didn’t win, but their talent didn’t suddenly disappear because Indiana won a preseason game.

Where this gets interesting for FanDuel later isn't me running to bet a Hali points over because he finally got back on the court. It's the assists, the minutes restriction, and how the offense looks once he's actually playing regular-season stretches. Seven points sounds small until you remember this isn't a player who needs to score 30 to have an impact. If he can still get his teammates organized and generate easy looks, everybody else's opportunities can change with him. On Minnesota's side, Ant and LaMelo combining for that scoring and passing is why I was talking about pace after their first game. But I'm not carrying a 16-minute comeback performance or a preseason guard rotation into a December prop projection like nothing changes. I want to see Hali's minutes climb, who handles the ball when he sits, and whether Minnesota's defensive discipline catches up with its new-look offense. That's the actual information worth saving.

The assist reads might be more interesting than the comeback points.6IX / WHAT I'M WATCHING