Tyrese Haliburton is the talk of the early season in Sacramento and through four games, he’s had surprisingly few rookie moments. That is until Tuesday evening at Golden 1 Center in the waning moments of the Kings’ 125-115 win over the Denver Nuggets.
Call it hazing. Call it a veteran move. Call it whatever you want, but in the final seconds of the Kings’ win, Buddy Hield called the rookie over as the game clock was winding down.
Before the final seconds of the game ended, Hield flipped the ball to Haliburton, who had possession as the shot clock expired.
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As the play unfolds, you can hear the broadcast crew of Doug Christie and Mark Jones forecast what is about to happen.
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“They’re trying to figure out who’s going to get the turnover,” Christie says.
NBA
“It’s the hot potato, rook, come and take this turnover,” Jones says.
“That’s cold-blooded,” Christie says while laughing.
Haliburton took the turnover in stride and even had a smile for Hield and point guard De’Aaron Fox as he walked to the other end.
Through 108 minutes this season, Haliburton has a total of three turnovers. The one at the end of the Nuggets win, while entertaining, doesn't go under his column, but is instead considered a team turnover.
The 20-year-old guard boasts an assist-to-turnover ratio of 5.3-to-.8, which would be stunning to a 10-year NBA vet.
Hield and Fox clearly were having fun with the former Iowa State star. This is part of his welcome to the league, which every rookie goes through.
On the plus side, Haliburton posted 13 points, six assists and three steals while running a team-high plus-20. Through four games, he’s been a breath of fresh air for the Kings and he’s one of the many reasons why the Kings are off to a 3-1 start on the year.