Pacers Star Tyrese Haliburton Sidelined by Hamstring Strain After Strong Return From Achilles Tear

Tyrese Haliburton's comeback from a torn Achilles has run into an unexpected obstacle. The Indiana Pacers guard will miss time with a hamstring strain, according to ESPN, just four games into his return to the court.

Pacers coach Rick Carlisle discussed the injury Wednesday on 1075 The Fan in Indianapolis. He said Haliburton was scheduled to meet with a hamstring expert, team doctors and team officials later that afternoon. "We'll hope this hamstring thing is not a big deal or not any kind of a long-term thing," Carlisle said.

Haliburton missed the entire 2025-26 season after tearing his Achilles in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals against the Thunder. Since coming back, he has played at a high level, averaging 21.8 points, 9.5 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game while shooting 51.6 percent from the field, 37.0 percent from three and 86.7 percent from the free throw line over Indiana's first four games. He also hit some clutch shots in the season opener.

He will not play Wednesday night against the 76ers, and the Pacers have games against the Heat, Nets and Hawks coming up over the next week. Indiana will also be without Ivica Zubac and TJ McConnell, both listed as out on the injury report, while Andrew Nembhard is questionable with a neck and back injury.

That leaves the team thin at guard and without its top center. Pascal Siakam is expected to move back into a lead offensive role, and the Pacers will likely turn to more small-ball lineups with Obi Toppin at center.

The timing is especially frustrating for a franchise trying to get back into the Eastern Conference conversation. The Pacers were roughly a half of basketball from a championship when Haliburton went down, and they have spent more than a year waiting for him to return. Soft tissue injuries always carry some concern, and Indiana must balance patience with the need to avoid falling too far behind in a stacked East.

Haliburton is the latest in a growing group of injured stars this season. Anthony Edwards, Jalen Williams, Paolo Banchero, Kawhi Leonard, Jaren Jackson Jr., Chet Holmgren and Alperen Sengun are all listed out for Wednesday night games. Brandon Ingram, Jimmy Butler, Kon Knueppel and Kristaps Porzingis have yet to make their season debuts.

The number of injuries may seem extreme this early, but it is closer to normal than the league might like to admit. Because the season is so young, the 82-game grind is hard to blame. The pace of the modern game, in which players push their bodies to move faster and more explosively, may be a bigger factor.

That makes the problem harder to solve than schedule reform, which neither the league nor the players are especially interested in. Playing with pace and maximizing possessions has proven to be the most effective approach in the modern era, so there is no obvious fix.