Indiana Pacers react to NBA Finals Game 7 🙏 ‘Our hearts dropped for Hali’ – Carlisle | NBA on ESPN

Indiana Pacers react to NBA Finals Game 7 🙏 ‘Our hearts dropped for Hali’ – Carlisle | NBA on ESPN

all right we’ll start first row i first want to congratulate uh Mark Dagnal one of the great young coaches in all of professional sports um and his team um the way this season started and everything they they they may have had those buses painted up back in December so um they’ll have a great parade they have great fans um this was uh this was a great series i’m so proud um of our players i’m so proud of our organization our hands showed up big time tonight it was really moving um what happened with Tyrese is uh just all of our hearts dropped but he will be back um I’m not I don’t have any medical information about what’s what what may or may not have happened but he’ll be back in time and um I believe he’ll make a full recovery so he he authored one of the great um individual playoff runs in the history of the NBA with dramatic play after dramatic play it was just something that no one’s ever seen um and did it as one of 17 you know that’s that’s the beautiful thing about him um as great a player as he is it’s it’s it’s always a team thing and so um our hearts uh go out to to him um but so proud of of everyone and um so questions first question over Rick Jamal Collier from ESPN uh you Tyrese we saw him greeting teammates uh on crutches after you know he was cheering from the locker room i’m not talking about his injury i’m not giving you I have no idea i haven’t heard anything about a diagnosis or anything just I mean just you know at at halftime did he say anything to the team and and the way you guys kept he was in he was in the locker room and um he was very much a part of a group that believed that they could do this um you know uh Nehard hit the shot at the end of the first half to give us a one-point lead and then you know we we needed to come out of the locker room and be better in the first five minutes of the third quarter we just we just weren’t I don’t have the whole sequence of events but um they they made some they made some great plays and um you know we got off to a slow start and and that quarter was the killer and then but I you know to me the fourth quarter and the the effort that our guys poured into the fourth quarter to win the quarter by one point um was epic and it was just it was symbolic of of what this team stands for um what basketball in Indiana stands for and that there was um there was no surrender it was just uh you know it was all defiant fight till the end and so I I told these guys coming into this that you know there’s no there’s no feel-good scenario when you get to the finals and and are unable to get it done and it really hurts um on the one hand on the other hand this team has given um all of Pacer Nation something to be very proud of you touched uh a little bit there about how much the team was able to fight in the fourth quarter specifically the first half after seeing Tyrese go down um your thoughts how they were able to battle then and on top of that is there anything that you could share with us that you said to the team after the game i’m not going to share anything I said after the game just I really just a tremendous amount of gratitude um for the character the skill um how together they were how hard they’ve continued to fight no matter what i mean you don’t author comebacks like this team did really over the course of the entire season without a just an indomitable competitive spirit to fight together and that’s what they were and that’s what they did second row uh Ismi from Radio Canada coach Benedict Matan wasn’t able to play in the playoffs last year uh what did you think about how he kept you guys in the game in in the fourth quarter at in during his his first playoff experience he’s a fighter you know and I that’s one of the reasons I I he was the first guy in the game tonight um I I really I knew we needed him and these moments are moments that that he really um he really lives for as a competitor you know he’s talked about it i’ve seen it this is one of those physical types of games where you know you got to have pit bulls out there figuring out ways to get the ball in the basket get to the free throw line get stops um was really was really proud of of how he fought from start to finish any other questions for coach thank you coach all right start in the second row hey TJ um when Tyrese went down how did the team react and how do you feel you guys played from that point on um it was a it was a tough tough feeling to see your franchise guy go down like that um but to have to move on and and kind of compartmentalize it is tough um you know I thought we were I thought we were fine we we know I don’t I don’t even remember the score going into halftime but it was we were up one so um you know I thought we did a good job of kind of compartmentalizing it um obviously we missed him um but you know we all are devastated for him and you know obviously support him second row Scott Scott Agnes Fieldhouse Files tj can you take us inside the locker room right now what what was this like after the game knowing the season’s over and you guys came so close after a special year yeah um no moral victories obviously but um deflated but proud of everything we’ve accomplished um you know there’s no award for second place obviously so um everyone’s upset but you know hats off to OKC they were they were the better team today first on the left Jamal Collier from ESPN uh we saw Tai kind of greeting you guys as you came off the court you know we heard him cheering from the locker room um just anything you can share about sort of just what you guys said to him or just seeing him still kind of be a beat and trying to cheer you guys on even at halftime there i mean that’s just who Tai is um to go down like that and be selfless and um just continuing to to cheer for us and um even though he can’t play that just I think that just speaks volumes to who Tyrese Hallebertton is um one of the greatest human beings I’ve come in contact with great teammate um obviously hurt hurting for him but that’s just who he is tj TJ you mentioned compartmentalization that’s what professional athletes do they compartmentalize all the time i can’t imagine though that it was easy or even you were even able to do that in this situation given the magnitude of both the game and the injury yeah I mean when it when it happened I think a lot of us were were up um and like you said that’s kind of part of the job but it’s hard to do when you see your your guy go down like that and um and have have to move on right away and and finish the game um especially when it’s that early so you know we came back at halftime and we were all getting him a hug and telling him we support him and we’ll continue to support him throughout his rehab process last row tj what you guys have been able to do this season has inspired an entire city and I know the fan support has meant so much to you guys uh what message do you have to the fans after the season uh they’re absolutely incredible um just want to apologize for coming up short um we wouldn’t be in this position without them they’ve boiled us to a lot of wins and it’s an honor and a pleasure to to play in front of them tim Reynolds tim Reynolds AP uh TJ I apologize if this was asked earlier but the cameras got the image of Tyrese outside the locker room greeting a bunch of you guys you included what’s it say about him that that he stayed he could have gone to the airport already he could have gone whatever to the hotel and and what did you just take away from that little moment that that you two shared it doesn’t surprise me at all um that’s who he is as a person teammate um puts his ego aside constantly and he could have been in the locker room feeling sorry for himself after something like that happened but he wasn’t he was up greeting us you know a lot of us were hurting from the loss and he was up there consoling us that’s that’s who Tyrese Hallebertton is um he’s just the greatest man last question milro I guess just what’s it like to try to change how you’re going to attack a team like that on the fly i mean you guys have had to deal with injuries in midame a lot of times this season but try to do it in game seven against this defense just what was that challenge like what do you think you did well and what was tough and that’s it um you know I think up until they went on their run you know we were moving the ball taking care of it and um I didn’t take care of it so well obviously um their pressure can really get to you but I was just trying to be aggressive and um you know had some uncharacteristic turnovers but that happens and um just proud of the fight um we fought to the end and um but credit OKC they just they’re just really good thank you TJ started second row on the right pascal obviously Tyrese goes down uh just kind of what were your emotions in that moment and how difficult what did what did it take to sort of stay in the moment and actually keep playing through it at that point um yeah it was tough um well obviously just off the bat just wish him well i mean just hope for the best um but I’m just I’m I’m proud of that kid you know um he he he he went through so much during the year um a lot of criticism is just um it’s a it’s a lot you know for for a young for a young for a young kid to to go through and like um he he had a lot of a lot of stress a lot of you know like and and he just kept battling man like he he kept fighting every single day he kept um just working um and he did some incredible things like this whole playoff run and and this year and and um yeah like I’m I’m just super proud of him obviously you know it hurts it hurts because um we couldn’t get it done you know and and and I I wanted it so bad for him and and just because I know that you know he gave us everything you know everything he had and um it it just hurts that that that he you know he couldn’t he couldn’t see it through with us um but just incredibly proud of him and and everything he’s accomplished and um and I know you know it’s there’s more there’s more coming and and and yeah it’s it’s just it’s just a tough situation but we we all behind him i mean he was he was in the locker room you know like talking to everyone um and and just how selfless he is you know like he’s he’s going through some tough times and you know he he looked out for us and he wanted to be there for us and um it just shows his character and and and who he is as a player and it’s one of the big reason I’m here and and and you know he made it kind of super fun for me to be here um uh it it’s just you know like a couple years ago you know like I think you know basketball was just yeah it was kind of dark for me and like you know it was just not fun at all um and like I traded here and you know these guys they just they just gave me you know a boost and and um I started with Tai obviously but just playing with this guys been so incredible um just find my joy for the game um and and just just just playing with so much you know swagger and happiness and that’s all I want to do like as as a player man and um I’ve lo I lost that for a while and and it’s just so incredible that I came to a team like these guys and um Chad KP like Herb Herb Simon like the whole you know ownership group like um coaches Rick like you know yeah i I didn’t think like you know this was possible you know just cuz the situation that I was in and and just to see how amazing we did this year and and all the things that we accomplished it’s it’s just it’s obviously there’s no more victory cuz we want to win and and and we thought you know like we did you know a lot to to put ourselves in a position to win and and obviously it sucks and and we didn’t do that but I’m I’m super proud of everyone and I know I’m not even answering your question but it it’s just I really I really do love these guys and and um I’m super appreciative of the opportunity to be here and um that kind of kind of gave me my you know like that that joy for the game again and and I’m I’m just um super grateful for that second red medal chris Woodlick CBS4 i know you were touching on how personal this season was for you can you realize do you realize how special it was and what it meant to to the to the state of Indiana and really to the whole NBA i think you had a lot of folks on board with being the underdog and being able to get this deep into the NBA final yeah yeah i mean we we I think I think we we did it the right way man um that’s something that I can I can proudly say um there’s no shortcuts um we’ve said all year like we’re not a sexy team we’re not we’re not a team that everyone wants to watch um and for a while you know you know Indie was just like hey like nobody cares you know um and and we made people care and and and that’s something to be proud of um and I hope you know the fans I just want to say like so incredible like the support all year has been amazing um just to see how the city you know was so alive um and and feel blessed that we were the like people that gave him that um so and I you know we sorry you know like we wanted to do it you know for Indie we we want we want it more than anything um and just just for for the city for the state just cuz they deserve it like the these guys um sleep breathe basketball and um and it was refreshing for me like to be in that environment and and to see how much you know basketball means to to to to a group of people and um and yeah I’m super I’m super grateful man and and and I hope I hope you know you guys can see that we fought hard and and and we sorry like we couldn’t get it done but um you know we’ll continue to fight last on the right Pascal you touched a little bit on the fans but it was just such an incredible run you really inspired the whole city so just what is your message to the fans after Yeah it’s just um thank again thank you so much you know to the fans um we like some of those games man like I just I have flashbacks you know just how amazing the crowd was and and we couldn’t do it without them and and um and every time we were out there and you know the game felt like you know it was getting away you know we kept just just battling cuz cuz we wanted to make Indiana proud we wanted to make our fans proud and um and and we we we tried our best you know um and but you know at the end of the day you know you win some you lose some and um we just got to be strong and keep going and and I you know I told everyone like you know I love every single one of these guys and um I wouldn’t do it with anybody else and and I’m just um I’m I’m super proud so proud of the team and and you know it’s hard to look look forward in the future you know after you lose like this but um yeah I’m I’m super super proud of my team and and and again I wouldn’t go to battle with anybody else yeah hardock from China and paces.com you just mentioned you played white basketball and tell you that the entire China was amazed by how you guys put together they become your fans and paces fans nobody watched Pacas before they now starting watch the paces yeah what does it mean to you to demonstrate great basketball not just to the state of Indiana but around the world yeah um I mean I guess that’s that’s amazing and and and obviously um I I think because of the way we do it and and you know it’s not it’s not the most popular way and and you know in in in the NBA where you know it’s all about stars and and you know um teams can the team concept can get kind of put to the side and you know we we kind of show that um you can be a team you know and and and and go out there and fight and and everyone play together and and you have an opportunity to win um obviously we didn’t do it we didn’t finish it and and again it’s It’s no more victory like but um I can say that you know like we we are happy that you know there’s some people that can look at us and be like yeah we like team and and we hope that that can set a trend for for you know the days coming forward and and again yeah shout out China thank you Pascal [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause]

Hear from Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle and players T. J. McConnell and Pascal Siakam as they break down how the Pacers kept their poise despite NBA All-Star Tyrese Haliburton going down early in the first quarter of Game 7 finale of the 2025 NBA Finals.

0:00 Rick Carlisle
5:31 T. J. McConnell
10:53 Pascal Siakam

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