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The Pacers banned Tyrese Haliburton's father from attending games for the "foreseeable future" on Thursday after his on-court altercation with Giannis Antetokounmpo, per ESPN's Shams Charania.
The Pacers clinched their first-round series with the Bucks with a Game 5 win on Tuesday, but a pair of heated exchanges between John Haliburton and the nine-time All-Star after the buzzer sounded became a bigger story. Haliburton was on the court waving a towel at Antetokounmpo in their first interaction, and the two got into a verbal sparring match and had to be separated in the second.
"I believe in being humble in victory," Antetokounmpo said after the game. "A lot of people out there that are like, no, when you win the game, you talk s— and it's a green light for you to be disrespectful towards somebody else. I disagree."
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Tyrese Haliburton, who hit a game-winning layup with 1.3 seconds remaining in overtime, said he didn't know the altercation had happened until he got back to the locker room, but he agreed that his father was out of line.
John Haliburton will now be unable to watch his son play for the rest of the postseason. Here's what to know about his ban.
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Is John Haliburton banned?
John Haliburton is now banned from Pacers games, home and road, for the "foreseeable future." The decision was made by the Pacers organization, not the NBA, and Haliburton was understanding and accepting of it, according to Charania.
This was a decision made by the Pacers front office and John Haliburton was understanding and accepted the choice after confronting Giannis Antetokounmpo on the court postgame Tuesday night. https://t.co/8FnFQSOIAZ
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 1, 2025The Pacers begin a second-round playoff series with the Cavaliers on Sunday. Haliburton likely won't be in attendance for the rest of the postseason, and it remains to be seen if his ban will carry over into next season.
Giannis Antetokounmpo-Tyrese Haliburton's dad fight
After Game 5 ended, cameras caught Antetokounmpo and John Haliburton face-to-face.
Antetokounmpo appeared to approach Haliburton and Tyrese's father didn't back down. The two exchanged some harsh words before being separated.
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) April 30, 2025Another clip shows Haliburton going onto the court immediately as time expired, slowly approaching Antetokounmpo and waving his towel at him. The power forward did nothing except stare straight ahead.
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) April 30, 2025John Haliburton apology
On Wednesday, Haliburton's father took to X to issue an apology to Antetokounmpo and the Bucks and Pacers organizations.
He also spoke to TMJ4 about his interactions with Antetokounmpo on Wednesday. Regarding their first encounter, he said, "It was in the moment, as if I was looking right through him. And yes, I had the banner in my hand, and I was yelling 'Yay, yay, yay.' Giannis never said anything to me, I never said anything to Giannis."
As for their face-to-face interaction, Haliburton said Antetokounmpo grabbed his hands, put his forehead against Haliburton's, and said, "don't disrespect me."
"I said to him, 'I was not trying to disrespect you,' which I wasn't. I'm telling you, I did not do that on purpose," Haliburton said. "And then I said to him, 'I love you,' he said it back to me, 'I love you,' we patted chests, he gave a thumbs up, and he walked away."
"He said, 'Don't disrespect me. Don't f-ing disrespect me.' And I said I was not trying to disrespect you."
In an exclusive interview with @TMJ4, Tyrese Haliburton's dad talks about last night's confrontation with Giannis after Game 5. pic.twitter.com/hcFVAwnbd9
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