Pacers Star Haliburton Faces Shingles Diagnosis While Recovering from Injury

Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton has been diagnosed with shingles while already sidelined with an Achilles injury. The 25-year-old will be away from the team for 2-3 weeks as he recovers from the painful viral infection.

Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton is dealing with another health setback after being diagnosed with shingles, head coach Rick Carlisle announced on Sunday.

The 25-year-old player has been out of action this entire season due to a ruptured right Achilles tendon he suffered during Game 7 of the NBA Finals against Oklahoma City Thunder back in June. The Thunder went on to win the championship.

Despite his injury, Haliburton has been present at most Pacers games throughout the season. However, Carlisle indicated the guard will need to stay away from the team for approximately two to three weeks while battling this latest condition.

“It’s a very painful thing,” Carlisle explained to media members on Sunday. “He will make a full recovery, but this happened over the last few days. He was meeting us in D.C. and had some odd symptoms and he came back here. That’s what’s happening with him. We certainly wish him a speedy recovery. It’s a unique case and a unique situation, but I talked to him a few times and he’s always in a good mood, so he’ll get through it.”

Shingles develops from a viral infection that creates a painful skin rash, stemming from the same virus responsible for chickenpox. The Mayo Clinic explains that once someone contracts chickenpox, the virus remains dormant in their body permanently and can resurface as shingles years later.

Without their star player, the Pacers have struggled significantly this season, posting a 15-43 record that places them at the bottom of the Eastern Conference. Only the Sacramento Kings, with a 12-46 record, have performed worse league-wide.

During the 2024-25 regular season, Haliburton put up impressive numbers with 18.6 points, 9.2 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game across 73 contests, all as a starter. His performance earned him All-NBA third team recognition for consecutive seasons.

The two-time All-Star has compiled career statistics of 17.5 points, 8.8 assists and 3.7 rebounds over 333 regular-season appearances (294 as a starter) split between Sacramento from 2020-22 and Indiana since then.

Haliburton entered the NBA when Sacramento drafted him 12th overall in 2020 following his college career at Iowa State.