Normally when we think of the best point guards in the NBA we think of a few names in particular: Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving. Maybe you might even throw Luka Doncic in there depending on what position you think he plays.
But it’s time to add a new name to the pot: Tyrese Haliburton.
The Pacers’ point guard ascended into All-Star form last season, carrying the Pacers to a respectable 28-28 record in the 56 games he played. He very clearly established himself as one of the best players at this position. The way he processes things is beyond impressive.
But just calling him one of the best at his position right now isn’t quite emphatic enough to express how amazing he’s been for the Pacers this season. I think it’s safe to say that he’s been the best point guard in the NBA this year.
Now, look. It’s still early. The Pacers have only played 11 games so far this season so the sample size is beyond small. But Haliburton is playing out of his mind right now.
He’s averaging 24.7 points and 12.5 assists through 11 games while shooting 53 percent from the field, 43 percent from 3-point range and 94 percent from the free-throw line. He’s on track to be the first player to ever have 50/40/90 shooting splits while averaging at least 20 points and 10 assists, per StatMuse.
Tyrese Haliburton this season:
24.7 PPG
12.5 APG (!!)
3.4 3PM
53/44/93%On track to be the first player in NBA history with a 20p/10a season on 50/40/90% shooting. https://t.co/mKghnqaIvH
— StatMuse (@statmuse) November 15, 2023
Those numbers are impressive alone. However, those gaudy numbers only tell half of the story here. What really separates Haliburton from the pack — and makes him the best point guard in the NBA so far in my eyes — is how well he takes care of the ball considering the sheer volume of his production.
He’s doing things that have quite literally never been done before.
Let's visit Haliburton's last two games
The Pacers have played two consecutive games against the Philadelphia 76ers.
In those games, Haliburton has 58 total points and 32 total assists. He didn’t register a single turnover in either game, which apparently sets an NBA record for the most consecutive assists without a turnover.
Tyrese Haliburton went OFF tonight in the Pacers W 🔥
33 PTS 7 REB 15 AST 7 3PM
He has 32 assists over his last 2 games without a SINGLE turnover, the most in that stretch without one in NBA history 🤯 pic.twitter.com/jkh2ZUorGe
— NBA (@NBA) November 15, 2023
That’s unreal.
It gets even better
Let’s extrapolate that number out a little bit more, shall we?
In that two-game stretch, Haliburton has dished out 32 assists. But those 32 assists weren’t his only passes, obviously. And every pass brings risk of a turnover — no matter how safe it is.
A teammate could be right next to you, but if the ball bounces off of that teammate’s hands because they aren’t ready to catch it and it goes to the defense, that’s still your turnover. That’s why it’s important to measure playmaking by passes overall, too.
NBA aficionado and Pacers beat analyst Caitlin Cooper did just that. She found that Haliburton threw 149 total passes through those two games without throwing a single turnover.
Tyrese Haliburton has made 149 passes over the last two games without committing a turnover.
— Caitlin Cooper (@C2_Cooper) November 15, 2023
Can you imagine doing literally anything 149 times without messing up? Nope. I can’t either.
Haliburton is the only player to have a two game stretch like this
I looked at Haliburton’s gaudy numbers and his lack of mistakes and thought, surely, someone had to have gotten this hot before, right? Wrong. We’ve never seen this.
I went over to Basketball-Reference’s Player Finder to try and find a player that’s had at least 50 points, 30 assists and no turnovers in a two-game span. Guess who the only one was?
That’s right. Tyrese Haliburton.
That’s unreal.
This is incredible, but it's more of the same for Haliburton
Again, we’ve only got an 11 game sample, but Haliburton has been this awesome all season long so far.
Currently, he’s only averaging 2.1 turnovers per game to go along with a league-leading 12.5 assists. That’s about a 6-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, folks. That’s ridiculous.
Has anyone else done that in league history? Nope. Once again, it’s just Haliburton. He’s the only player to average, at least, 12 assists and fewer than 3 turnovers in a season.
If you knock the assists per game down to 11 instead of 12 then you get Chris Paul a couple of times and John Stockton. Two Hall of Famers. That’s who Haliburton’s comparisons are right now. But then when you add in the fact that he’s also shooting 7.8 3-pointers per game at a 43 percent clip? There’s really no comparison.
Haliburton is playing out of his mind right now. Is this going to last? Probably not. The shooting will slow down. The assists might gradually dip, too.
But, regardless, I think it’s safe to say that he’s figured out his place in the NBA among the league’s best point guards. The only thing that’s left to determine is how close he truly is to the top.
If his recent play is any indication, he’s probably already there.
