Tyrese Haliburton #0 of the Indiana Pacers during the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament on December 07, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada ; John Haliburton before the 2023 NBA In-Season Tournament on December 7, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo:
Ethan Miller/Getty ; Mike Kirschbaum/NBAE via Getty
NBA superstar Tyrese Haliburton’s dad, John Haliburton, has been by his side throughout his career.
John, who was previously a basketball coach, instilled the love of basketball in his son from a young age.
“When Tyrese made that decision, ‘I’m gonna be an NBA player’ — when he was real little I got him a shirt that said ‘NBA Player’ — he believed that,” John told NBA.com in 2024. “He never thought about anything else. In fact, we never talked about anything else [as a career choice].”
Tyrese played for Iowa State University before getting selected by the Sacramento Kings in the 2020 NBA Draft. However, it wasn’t until he was traded to the Indiana Pacers in 2022 that he rose to prominence as one of the top NBA point guards.
On April 29, John made headlines after Tyrese and the Pacers narrowly defeated the Milwaukee Bucks to advance to the second round of the NBA Playoffs. After the nail-biting game ended, John stormed the court but stopped in front of the Bucks’ star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and waved a towel with his son’s face on it as Antetokounmpo stared and stood in defeat.
John later apologized on X and Tyrese also condemned his dad’s actions.
Here’s everything to know about Indiana Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton’s dad, John Haliburton.
Tyrese Haliburton #0 of the Indiana Pacers with his father John Haliburton prior to a game on February 11, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Ron Hoskins/NBAE/Getty
John, who raised Tyrese with his mom Brenda in Wisconsin, has encouraged Tyrese to play basketball since he was a toddler.
“My pops, y’all know, he’s the one who put the ball in my hand,” Tyrese said during a July 2023 press conference.
Tyrese explained that his dad “coached a girl’s middle school team” when he was born, and those women have since told him, “‘Oh, I held you when you were a baby.’ “
“When I was barely old enough to crawl, my dad would make sure that one half of the court was reserved for me and one half for his team, so they were probably a great half court basketball team,” he said while laughing.
John also recalled bringing his son to practice and told NBA.com in 2024, “I couldn’t go without him. I’m talkin’ 3 years old. He would take a girls’ ball and dribble that thing.”
Tyrese recalled to The Ames Tribune in 2019 how he was “going to basketball camp for first graders at preschool age.”
Tyrese also shared how his dad would show him so many videos of NBA legend Magic Johnson from the 1990s that it was “ridiculous.”
As of 2019, John still practiced his love for the game by working as a basketball referee.
John Haliburton before the game during the semifinals of the In-Season Tournament on December 7, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Juan OCampo/NBAE via Getty
John and Brenda are staples at Indiana Pacers games.
Brenda famously never missed any of Tyrese’s basketball games as a child, while John rarely skipped his son’s games. John has kept up the tradition by frequently attending Pacers games and often sitting courtside under the basket.
“My parents both worked to make sure me and my brothers could do whatever we wanted. We were a middle-class family, not any more money than people around,” Tyrese told NBA.com. “But if I wanted this game, these shoes, that shirt, whatever, I got it. That just tells you how much they cared about us getting where we wanted.”
John even frequently shows off custom merch he’s made for himself to support his son — including one custom Pacers jacket with photos of his son playing basketball as a kid sewn onto the sleeve.
John was also by his son’s side during the virtual 2020 NBA Draft when Tyrese was drafted to the Sacramento Kings.
“Did I just hear them say Tyrese Haliburton? My baby just did exactly what he said he was going to do … play in the NBA,” John said in the Kings’ docuseries, The Come Up: The Tyrese Haliburton Story.
Tyrese Haliburton #0 of the Indiana Pacers celebrates with his father John Haliburton after winning Round One, Game Five of the 2025 NBA Playoffs on April 29, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty
Tyrese has gotten emotional thanking both John and Brenda for their support over the years.
“My dad has always pushed me. He’s my biggest fan as you can see,” Tyrese said during the same 2023 Pacers press conference. “I mean [he’s] wearing a jersey to the press conference … I’m really appreciative of you pops and your love.”
Meanwhile, John has also spoken highly of his son and praised him for having the “desire from the inside” to do well.
“Tyrese has always been the type of kid that you didn’t really have to push him because he had the desire from inside, and he wanted to play,” John said during a December 2023 post-game interview. “All you had to do was direct him [and] let him do his thing. Simple as that.”
Tyrese Haliburton #0 of the Indiana Pacers during overtime of Game 5 of the 2025 NBA Playoffs on April 29, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Justin Casterline/Getty
John got into a heated confrontation with Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo after Tyrese and the Pacers beat the Bucks in a narrow playoff game on April 29.
After the Bucks lost 119-118, John rushed to the court, where he approached Antetokounmpo and waved a towel with his son’s face on it while reportedly swearing at the MVP, per ESPN.
Just moments later, Antetokounmpo found out that the man was Tyrese’s dad — as opposed to a Pacers fan — and subsequently approached him by touching foreheads. The two exchanged words in a heated moment before they were separated.
Antetokounmpo later spoke about the altercation during a post-game interview and said that John’s behavior was “very disrespectful” and “totally unacceptable.”
“I believe in being humble in victory,” Antetokounmpo told reporters. “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.”
Antetokounmpo said that he felt better after their second altercation, as he was able to share his feelings and get in a “good place” with John.
Tyrese also spoke about the incident and told reporters during a post-game interview that he didn’t “agree” with his dad’s actions.
“Basketball is basketball and let’s keep it on the court,” Tyrese said. “I think he just got excited, saw his son make a game winner and came on the court, but we had a conversation.”
“I talked with him. I’ll talk with Giannis. I don’t think my pops was in the right at all there,” he continued.
Hours after the confrontation occurred, John issued an apology on X by writing, “I sincerely apologize to Giannis, the Milwaukee Bucks and the Pacers organization for my actions following tonight’s game. This was not a good reflection on our sport or my son and I will not make that mistake again.”
