With many of the Kings sidelined, Tyrese Haliburton is making impressive strides
Acting head coach Doug Christie scanned through the box score lying in front of him late last Friday night searching for one name. Tyrese Haliburton’s growth was the focal point of his conversation, and he knew the second-year guard’s counting stats would help strengthen his point.
Even with high expectations for the stats, Christie couldn’t help but react to the final tallies: 21 points, 10 assists and six rebounds.
“Wow. … That’s damn good.”
Yet, those numbers were just the surface of Haliburton’s impact and continued growth that was on display as the primary initiator against the Memphis Grizzlies. Christie made sure that everyone in the media room was well aware of that. Box scores don’t have a way to quantify the valuable leadership Haliburton brought during a time of desperate need, with half the team’s normal roster unable to play because of COVID-19 protocols and injuries.
“It was just his presence and the way he went about his business,” Christie said. “For me, it was really, really impressive from Ty.”
Haliburton quickly proved that his play against Memphis was no fluke. San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich and Golden State’s Steve Kerr showed him every defensive scheme in the book. Golden State, the best defense in the league, was so focused on disrupting his rhythm that it opted for a box-and-one coverage. Haliburton successfully adjusted to every scenario, as evident by his three consecutive games with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Impressive was probably not an adjective commonly used by the Sacramento fan base after a blowout loss to Memphis. Disappointed, frustrated and even confused were more common options after a 19-point loss to the Grizzlies. However, contextualizing is crucial given the absurd circumstances Haliburton and his available teammates faced.
The NBA’s recent COVID-19 outbreak hit the Kings particularly hard. De’Aaron Fox, Davion Mitchell, Terence Davis, Alex Len, Marvin Bagley and Louis King were all unavailable Friday after being placed under health and safety protocols. Interim head coach Alvin Gentry and assistant Mike Longabardi were also benched by protocols. Oh, and Richaun Holmes was sidelined with a right eye injury.
Playmaking was already a scarcity on the 2020-21 Kings, and that issue became magnified with Haliburton suddenly functioning as the lone point guard in uniform.
Typically, opposing defenses would spend a large majority of their time and energy attempting to make Fox uncomfortable. That would ease the burden of responsibility and pressure on Haliburton and vice-versa. Memphis elected to limit Haliburton’s impact and forced the rest of the Kings to make them regret that decision.
Haliburton managed to impressively navigate the defensive pressure Memphis applied as the Grizzlies constantly threw multiple bodies at him. Throughout 38 minutes of physically and mentally demanding playing time, he assisted on an impressive 41.7% of his teammates’ made shots.
“The kid has tremendous talent, tremendous IQ, and his future is bright. I expected nothing different from him,” Christie said. “We’re down people, he has the skillset, he has the mind to do it, and I’m really excited to watch him continue to grow in year two.”
Without Holmes and Len, the Kings’ best pick-and-roll partners for Haliburton, Tristan Thompson, Damian Jones and Neemias Queta, alternated at the center position with minimal success. Memphis was more than comfortable with Chimezie Metu and Maurice Harkless shooting open with space as they continuously complicated Haliburton’s attempts to penetrate. Harkless and Metu were a combined 3-for-13 from 3-point range against the Grizzlies.
Justin Robinson, who was acquired with a hardship exception on game day, played just seven minutes. Jahmi’us Ramsey has spent the majority of his time with Stockton for a reason. The potential is there, but he clearly still needs time to hone his craft, which was evident in his underwhelming 14 minutes on the court.
Haliburton was constantly tasked with optimizing his teammates, while nobody was capable of returning the favor. Haliburton was asked to do nearly everything on offense for the Sacramento Kings. He didn’t play a perfect game, but it was one of the best performances he’s had since coming out of Iowa State.
It was his recognition of voids, adaptability to fill them and his unwavering relentlessness that were encouraging even in a blowout loss.
“I think he’s learning to be more of a leader on a day-to-day basis because, you know, we’re without Fox and a lot of times Fox is that guy,” Christie said. “Every day he is improving, and tonight was another step. He’s down guys, he needs to step up..
Haliburton recognized the moment as a learning one for him as a chance to expand his impact and comfortability. Only part of that growth will show in box scores primarily in the form of points, assists and overall efficiency. Simultaneously, he will need to remain mentally sharp in moments, even those comparable to Friday night when he was visibly exhausted in multiple aspects.
“With what’s going on with our team, it’s probably going to be like that for the next couple of games,” Haliburton acknowledged. “So, it’s just being prepared that.”
Brenden Nunez is a writer for The Kings Herald.