The notion that the NBA rigs game outcomes to maximize viewership, particularly in the playoffs, has become increasingly prevalent among fans in recent years. However, fresh off his first NBA Finals appearance, Indiana Pacers star point guard Tyrese Haliburton dismissed the narrative with a laugh, citing simple reasons.
Haliburton and Co. enjoyed a magical 2025 postseason run, dispatching two of the Eastern Conference’s top three seeds (Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks) as the No. 4 seed (50-32). Indiana ultimately came within one win of defeating the league-best Oklahoma City Thunder (68-14) in the Finals, with Haliburton exiting Game 7 early after tearing his right Achilles tendon.
An NBA championship would’ve marked the Pacers’ first in franchise history. Meanwhile, the Thunder secured their inaugural title since relocating to OKC in 2008. Despite the compelling storyline, Haliburton believes the unexpected Finals clash was the result of good fortune, not behind-the-scenes manipulation.
Tyrese Haliburton Laughs Off Rumors of the NBA Being Scripted
During an appearance on Tuesday’s episode of “Impaulsive with Logan Paul,” Haliburton was asked to weigh in on whether the league is scripted. The two-time All-Star didn’t hesitate to shut down the idea, alluding to Indiana and OKC’s relatively small market sizes and limited widespread popularity.
“Well, the problem is, I play for the Indiana Pacers, so if the NBA was gonna rig the league, the last two teams they’d probably rig it for would be the Indiana Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder,” Haliburton said (timestamp: 26:29).
Continuing to analyze the conspiracy “from a city standpoint,” Haliburton highlighted how the NBA hosting its premier event in modest markets is less than ideal for travel.
“Also, getting flights to those places is a really difficult thing to do,” Haliburton explained. “You’re going to have a connection if you’re not flying private every single time. So, I mean, I think that if the league wanted to rig it, they would’ve probably rigged it for the Knicks to be successful. So, I think it’s just kind of good luck, just happenstance, that we happened to be there.”
To Haliburton’s point, the Pacers and Thunder are both positioned in the bottom third of the NBA in market size. Moreover, in October, Forbes ranked them as the 22nd ($3.6 billion) and 21st ($3.65 billion) most valuable franchises, respectively.
Conversely, the Knicks, whom Indiana defeated in the East finals, play in the NBA’s largest market, with the organization valued at a whopping $7.5 billion (second).
As such, the league seemingly wouldn’t have much incentive to engineer a Finals featuring two of its lower-profile teams.