Ben Simmons, James Harden, and Tyrese Maxey never were pure point guards. Haliburton and Brunson are.

Pascal Siakam Narrowly Beats Out Tyrese Haliburton To Win Eastern Conference Finals MVP originally appeared on Fadeaway World.

Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers advanced to the 2025 NBA Finals when they beat the New York Knicks by a score of 125-108. The Pacers are now going to face off against the Oklahoma City Thunder with Game 1 on Thursday night.

Tyrese Haliburton thought the Eastern Conference finals MVP trophy was his after the Pacers’ Game 6 win against the Knicks. But then it wasn’t.

The Indiana Pacers superstar Tyrese Haliburton was caught in an awkward situation while stepping ahead for the ECF MVP trophy.

Tyrese Haliburton took a shot to the face late in the first half of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals. The Pacers point guard was hit in the face by New York's OG Anunoby as the Knicks forward broke free from Haliburton and gave him what looked like an unintentional slap on his way to get the ball.

That is why he has been named the X-Factor for the Indiana Pacers' unprecedented dominance in the 2025 playoffs. But in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals, when coach Rick Carlisle needed the two-time All-Star the most, he disappeared — something that ESPN's Jay Williams didn't take well.