Tyrese Haliburton

Tyrese Haliburton (born February 29, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Iowa State Cyclones. Listed at 6 feet 5 inches (1.96 m) and 185 pounds (84 kg), he plays the point guard position.

Born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Haliburton was a consensus three-star recruit from Oshkosh North High School, whom he led to a state championship in his senior season. As a freshman with Iowa State, he set the program's single-game assists record. He had breakout success as a sophomore and was named to the second team All-Big 12 Conference despite suffering a season-ending wrist injury.

In 2019, Haliburton led the United States to a gold medal and earned all-tournament team honors at the FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Heraklion, Greece.

Haliburton played basketball for Oshkosh North High School in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. As a sophomore, he was named to the All-Fox Valley Association (FVA) second team and defensive team. In his junior season, Haliburton averaged 18 points, six assists, and five rebounds per game, earning FVA Player of the Year and Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division I All-State accolades with his team falling just short of the State Tournament.

As a senior hungry to bring Oshkosh North their first boys basketball state title in school history, he averaged 22.9 points, 6.2 assists, 5.1 rebounds, 3.5 steals and 1.7 blocks per game, leading Oshkosh North to a 26–1 record. On February 18, 2018, he scored a career-high 42 points in a win over Kaukauna High School and West Virginia recruit Jordan Mccabe. Haliburton scored 31 points, including 24 in the second half, and shot 18–of–18 from the free throw line in a Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Division I state championship victory over Brookfield East High School, his program's first state title. He was named Oshkosh Northwestern All-Area Player of the Year, Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year, and FVA co-Player of the Year. Haliburton was selected to the WBCA Division I All-State team and the USA Today All-USA Wisconsin first team.

Recruiting

Considered a three-star recruit by major recruiting services, he committed to playing college basketball for Iowa State on September 18, 2017.

On November 6, 2018, Haliburton made his college debut for Iowa State, posting 12 points, four rebounds, and four assists in a 79–53 win over Alabama State. He scored a season-high 16 points in an 82–55 victory against Omaha on November 26. On December 9, Haliburton recorded 15 points and 17 assists, with one turnover, in a 101–65 win over Southern. His 17 assists were the most by an Iowa State player in any game, surpassing the previous record set by Eric Heft in 1974. Through 35 appearances in his freshman season, Haliburton averaged 6.8 points, 3.6 assists, and 1.5 steals per game. He was the only NCAA Division I true freshman, other than Zion Williamson, to accumulate at least 50 steals and 30 blocks. Haliburton had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 4.5, which led the Big 12 Conference and ranked second in Division I.

Haliburton was named Big 12 Player of the Week on November 11, 2019, during his sophomore season, after averaging 13.5 points and 13.0 assists in wins over Mississippi Valley State and Oregon State. On November 27, he scored a season-high 25 points, to go with nine rebounds and five assists, in an 83–76 loss to Michigan at the Battle 4 Atlantis. On January 4, 2020, Haliburton recorded 22 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists in an overtime loss to TCU, the first triple-double by an Iowa State player since Monté Morris in 2016. He was subsequently named Big 12 Player of the Week for the second time. After fracturing his left wrist on February 8 during a game against Kansas State, Haliburton was ruled out for the rest of the season. He averaged 15.2 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game as a sophomore. Haliburton was named to the second team All-Big 12. After the season, he announced that he would enter the 2020 NBA draft and forgo his remaining college basketball eligibility.

Sacramento Kings (2020–present)

Coming into the draft, Haliburton was considered a guaranteed lottery pick, with some experts having him going as early as second overall to the Golden State Warriors in mock drafts. Haliburton was selected with the 12th pickby the Sacramento Kings in the first round of the 2020 NBA draft hosted on November 18, 2020. On November 27, 2020, the Sacramento Kings officially announced that they had signed with Haliburton. On December 23, 2020, Haliburton made his NBA debut, coming off from bench in a 124–122 overtime win over the Denver Nuggets with twelve points, four assists, two rebounds and a block. On May 2, 2021, Haliburton suffered a left knee injury against the Dallas Mavericks. Although an MRI later revealed no ligament damage and is expected to make a full recovery, it was announced he would miss the last seven games of the 2020–21 season for the Sacramento Kings.

On May 20, 2021, Tyrese Haliburton was named as a top 3 finalist for Rookie of the Year. On June 17, 2021, he was named to the NBA All Rookie First team.

Haliburton played for the United States at the 2019 FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Heraklion, Greece. On June 30, he scored a team-high 21 points, shooting 8–of–9 from the field, in a 102–84 group stage win over Lithuania. Haliburton averaged 7.9 points and 6.9 assists per game, shooting 69 percent from the field. He led the United States to a gold medal and was named to the all-tournament team.

NBA

College

Haliburton's father, John, is a referee. Haliburton is a cousin of former basketball player Eddie Jones, who had a 14-year NBA career and was a three-time NBA All-Star.