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John Haliburton NBA ban, explained: Why Tyrese Haliburton's dad was cleared to attend Pacers playoff games

Daniel Mader

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John Haliburton NBA ban, explained: Why Tyrese Haliburton's dad was cleared to attend Pacers playoff games image

Tyrese Haliburton's stardom has hit a new level in the 2025 NBA Playoffs.

The Pacers star willed his squad to the Eastern Conference finals after series victories over the Bucks and Cavaliers, putting up some dominant performances despite Indiana often coming in as the underdog.

Now on the cusp of a potential NBA finals berth, Haliburton's heroics have been one of the top stories of this year's postseason. From a game-winner to end Milwaukee's season, to a miraculous shot that forced overtime against the Knicks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals — which prompted a Reggie Miller "choke" celebration from Haliburton — the point guard has proven himself as a playoff performer.

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However, through a significant chunk of the Pacers' 2025 playoff run, Haliburton's father has been forbidden from watching his son play in-person. Following an on-court altercation earlier in the postseason, John Haliburton was banned for the "foreseeable future" from Indiana's games.

Here's more on Tyrese Haliburton's dad's ban as well as a timetable for when we could see his return to Pacers games. 

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John Haliburton NBA ban, explained

As of the start of the 2025 NBA playoffs, when the Pacers entered as the No. 4 seed, John Haliburton was able to attend his son's games. In Game 5 of Indiana's first-round matchup against Milwaukee, Haliburton showed up in support, even having a flag with his son's face on it as the Pacers looked to close out the series.

However, that Game 5 vs. the Bucks is the reason for Haliburton's ban, as things escalated after the game ended.

MORE: Ranking the best 11 Pacers of all time | Where does Tyrese Haliburton rank?

John Haliburton-Giannis Antetokounmpo altercation

Game 5 of Indiana's first-round series ended with some fireworks, as Tyrese Haliburton downed a layup with little time remaining, a shot that won the game for the Pacers and sent them to the second round. 

It wasn't clear at first, but just moments after that shot went in and the Pacers began celebrating, the star guard's father got into a heated interaction with the opposing star: Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Various camera angles from fans showed that after the final buzzer sounded, Antetokounmpo, who was standing alone on the court as he grasped the final moments of his 2024-25 season, was approached by John Haliburton. Wearing his son's jersey and holding the flag with his son's face on it, Haliburton approached and stared down Antetokounmpo, appearing to throw some words his way in the process.

With Haliburton clearly taunting Antetokounmpo after his losing effort, that interaction was broken up — but only for a few moments.

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In the aftermath of the game, the Bucks star was then spotted on the broadcast having a face-to-face interaction with Haliburton, with neither of the two looking very happy with one another. They were separated, and Antetokounmpo went back to the locker room. 

After the game, Tyrese Haliburton said he didn't know about his father's actions until he was back in the locker room, and that he "doesn't agree" with what he did, taunting Antetokounmpo. 

"Basketball is basketball, and let's keep it on the court. I think that he just got excited, saw something, the game-winner, and just came on the court," Haliburton said. "We had a conversation. ... I'll talk with Giannis eventually about it, I don't think my pops was in the right at all there. Unfortunate what happened there."

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Antetokounmpo also detailed his side of the altercation with John Haliburton postgame. After noting how he prefers to be humble after victories, including his 2021 championship, he noted how "emotions run high" after a close playoff game.

"Having a fan — at the moment I thought it was a fan, I didn't realize it was Tyrese's [dad], which I love Tyrese, I think he's a great competitor," Antetokounmpo said. "[He was] coming in the floor, showing me his son on a towel with his face."

The Bucks star said that Haliburton was shouting "this is what we do" when he approached him, including some expletives, and he found it "disrespectful."

John Haliburton later took to social media to apologize for his interaction with Antetokounmpo. He spoke to TMJ4 about it later on, saying that "it might have seemed like" he was staring at the Bucks star, but claimed he was "looking through him" and it "wasn't like that."

"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," Haliburton told TMJ4. "There was no back-and-forth."

As for the face-to-face interaction, Haliburton said Antetokounmpo told him "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 told TMJ4. "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.

MORE: Inside the Knicks vs. Pacers playoffs history

Pacers ban John Haliburton for 'foreseeable future'

Not long after the Pacers advanced to the second round, ESPN's Shams Charania reported that John Haliburton would "not attend" Pacers games, whether home or away, for the "foreseeable future" after conversations with the team's front office.

Charania added that Haliburton "was understanding and accepted the choice" to keep him from attending future Pacers games. Since that decision was reported on May 1, Haliburton has not been at any Pacers playoff games. 

However, Tyrese Haliburton's father still found a way to make noise on social media after the Pacers' Game 1 win over New York, going viral in a video where he was dancing and imitating Miller's famous "choke" celebration, just as his son did after hitting a huge shot in the ECF.

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Will John Haliburton be unbanned?

The NBA appears to have reversed course on the topic of John Haliburton's presence at Pacers playoff games. John Haliburton will be allowed to attend Indiana's remain home playoff games, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.

The move comes after prominent voices called on the Pacers to relent on their punishment. After Indiana's Game 1 win vs. the Knicks, TNT analyst Charles Barkley said that John Haliburton "paid his dues" and "he's been punished enough."

"It's time to let Mr. Haliburton back in the building. My man paid his dues," Barkley said. "He did something very stupid, but he's been punished. I'm asking [Adam Silver] and the Indiana Pacers."

There are some stipulations to the ruling — namely that John Haliburton can only watch games from the suite, not court-side as he had previously done. It's also unclear if John Haliburton will be allowed to attend away games.

Regardless, he'll be back before long — Charania reported that John Haliburton is expected to be in the building as soon as Game 4.

MORE: Ranking the 7 worst chokes in Knicks history

How many games did John Haliburton miss?

In total, John Haliburton missed eight games as a result of his ban. The Pacers fared pretty well in those contests, posting a 6-2 record.

Interestingly, Indiana was perfect on the road when John Haliburton didn't attend matches. Its two losses came at Gainbridge Fieldhouse — a 126-104 loss to the Cavaliers on May 9 and a 106-100 loss to the Knicks on May 25.

Here's a closer look at the Pacers' efforts without John Haliburton in the building:

DateTeamHome/AwayResult
5/4CavaliersAwayW, 121-112
5/6CavaliersAwayW, 120-119
5/9CavaliersHomeL, 126-104
5/11CavaliersHomeW, 129-109
5/13CavaliersAwayW, 114-105
5/21KnicksAwayW, 138-135 (OT)
5/23KnicksAwayW, 114-109
5/25KnicksHomeL, 106-100

Daniel Mader

Daniel Mader is a Content Producer for The Sporting News. He joined SN in 2024 as an editorial intern following graduation from Penn State University. He has previously written for Sports Illustrated, NBC Sports, the Centre Daily Times, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, The Daily Collegian and LancasterOnline. Daniel grew up in Lancaster, Penn., with a love for baseball that’ll never fade, but could also talk basketball or football for days.