​NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – OCTOBER 21: Tyrese Haliburton #0 and Obi Toppin #1 of the Indiana Pacers celebrate a 123-120 win over the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on October 21, 2026 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)Getty ImagesNEW ORLEANS – Tyrese Haliburton finished his pre-game warmup Wednesday night at 5:43 p.m. by hitting two three pointers from the giant Pelicans logo at the center of the Smoothie King Center. After the second one dropped through the net, Haliburton walked toward Pacers assistant coach Isaac Yacob – who had just spent about 15 minutes rebounding and passing the ball to Haliburton – for a quick handshake. Together, the two sat on the bench to pore over film.Yacob is one of Haliburton’s closest friends. They originally connected during their time with the Sacramento Kings and have continued to build a relationship during their time with the Pacers. This summer, Yacob was a groomsman in Haliburton’s wedding. Their bond goes beyond basketball.Bonds like that, and others that surrounded Haliburton’s warmup for his first regular season NBA game in 559 days, had the star guard emotional as he returned to basketball. And how could he not be? Haliburton is a basketball romantic. He is the Pacers spirit and soul – the reason for their style and joy. He was finally back after missing an entire season thanks to a torn Achilles suffered in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals.“It just means a lot for me to be back doing what I love,” Haliburton said, holding his face up with his hand as he fielded questions after the game. His head, and emotions, were heavy after letting out tears in a walkoff interview with Pacers local broadcaster Jeremiah Johnson.It was the first time that Haliburton wore his wedding band during a press conference, a fitting signal of the people that meant the most to him during the rehab process. He couldn’t have marched on without his family. His wife, Jade, sat focused during Haliburton’s aforementioned warmup. His mom, who voiced the narration for a Pacers social media post welcoming her son back, was just a few seats away. His dad, as usual, was watching it all while moving around the court and speaking with just about everybody who surrounded the Pacers bench area.Two others checked in on Haliburton more than anyone else during his long recovery. One was Triple H, a retired wrestler and WWE legend. Triple H provided the narration for Haliburton’s own post celebrating his return to basketball. Haliburton wore a jacket when entering the arena that was a direct copy of the one Tripe H wore when he returned from a quad injury in 2002. The Pacers star is a huge WWE fan, so he leaned into that theme.“Just wanted to give a little ode to him,” Haliburton said.Triple H was at the game in spirit. The second person who supported Haliburton more than any non-family member during his rehab was at the game in reality. Pelicans guard Dejounte Murray, who spent mu