NBA players are, famously, immune to criticism, so it fell to the fans to voice their outrage over a recent anonymous player poll conducted by The Athletic that voted Tyrese Haliburton the league’s most overrated player.
Haliburton garnered 13 of the 90 votes (14.4%) in the poll, eclipsing Rudy Gobert (10%) and Trae Young (8.9%) as the NBA player deemed by his peers to have more name than game.
Pacers Fans React to New Athletic Poll on X
Pacers fans vehemently disagreed, letting their frustrations out on social media.
This is what happens when you
1. Don’t watch tape
2. Have major jealousy
3. Surveyed players at the end of the bench and only in the East
4. Indiana Pacers vs the 🌎 #YesCers— Christian Campbell (@scouttheplayer) April 22, 2025
Some fans, like the one below, couldn’t stand to see the Haliburton slander on their timeline.
@TyHaliburton22 @ctw_3 ?? what is this slander on the TL??
— Josh (@Xcert3K) April 22, 2025
Meanwhile, this Pacers fan urged Haliburton to prove his fellow players wrong in Game 2 of the Pacers’ NBA playoff series against the Milwaukee Bucks.
@TyHaliburton22 show them tonight that they are wrong.
— Tyler Freeman (@tylerfreeman21) April 22, 2025
Tyrese Haliburton Named Most Overrated in Player Poll
Indiana acquired Haliburton, the No. 12 overall pick in 2020 out of Iowa State, from the Sacramento Kings in a 2022 trade. Haliburton has been named to two All-Star games with the Pacers, including earning a starting spot in 2024, when he was also named to the All-NBA third team.
Haliburton averaged 18.6 points and 9.2 assists per game in 2024-25, down from 20.1 points and a league-high 10.9 assists in 2023-24. Pace may have played a slight role in the slight decline in counting stats as the Pacers played at a slower rate in 2024-25 after lapping much of the league the year before.
While Haliburton’s assist rate dropped from 44.9% to 38.9%, he improved his shooting efficiency and lowered his turnover rate to an elite level, per Cleaning the Glass.
The Pacers finished 47-35 in 2024, reversing their record from 2022-23, Haliburton’s first full season with the team, and lost in the Eastern Conference Finals to the eventual champion Boston Celtics. This season, the team won 50 games for the first time since 2013-14 and, as the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference, currently holds a 1-0 first-round series lead over the Bucks.
why would any players even vote on this lol? just hater behavior instead of supporting their fellow players
— @HyyyypeHoops (@hyyyypehoops) April 22, 2025
Indiana Pacers Seek Continued Playoff Success With Haliburton
The Athletic surmised that players may have felt Haliburton got too much credit for Indiana’s run to the Eastern Conference Finals last season, with series wins over the depleted Bucks (without Giannis Antetokounmpo) and the New York Knicks. While this year’s Bucks have Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard missed game one of the series as he recovers from a serious calf injury.
Pacers fans on X surely think Haliburton got too little credit for leading the team to its first Conference Finals appearance since 2014.
Bunch of box score watchers
— Brady (@IndySportsTalks) April 22, 2025
While the poll may not embed itself in the hearts and minds of X users, it did show some consistency from last season. Gobert and Young were voted the most and third-most overrated players last season. Jordan Poole finished second, with 8.6% of the vote, while Haliburton took home 3.7% of the 81 votes.
Indiana tips off game two at home against the Bucks at 7 p.m. on NBA TV, with Lillard slated to return. The Pacers took game one 117-98 as Haliburton finished with 10 points, 12 assists, and seven rebounds on 3/13 shooting from the field.