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Jamal Collier, ESPN
MILWAUKEE — Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton said his younger brother, who was sitting in the stands, called him the “N-word” by a fan during Game 1 of Indiana's playoff series against the Bucks in Milwaukee. He said that he was
Haliburton addressed the incident in his postgame press conference after the Pacers' 125-108 victory in Game 2 on Tuesday night.
“My brother was in the stands the other day and he was called the N-word,” Halliburton said. “It was important for our family to deal with that. And it was important for us to talk about it because it didn't sit well with anyone in our family. Now that our family… It was important to be here. My brother handled it the right way.”
Halliburton was born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, about 140 miles from Milwaukee. He has three siblings (two older and one younger) and said his immediate family was in town with him at the start of the playoffs. This will be his playoff debut in his home state.
When asked about his experience returning to Wisconsin to start the series, Haliburton paused for several seconds before beginning to answer. Shaking his head, he began answering about how nice it was to have his family in attendance, but then stopped and started talking about his racial slur.
After Tuesday's game, the Bucks were asked about Haliburton's comments.
A Bucks spokesperson responded: “Arena guest services personnel reported that several guests were not seated in their correct seats during Sunday's game.” “The guest services representative asked the group to move one section to the correct seats. A member of the group then complained that the person sitting in front of him had used derogatory language toward him. The group denied the accusations, the group moved to their correct seats, and no further incidents were reported.
“We take the fan environment very seriously and are committed to providing a safe and secure experience.”
Halliburton said the team “handled the environment well” and added that “conversations were [in the stands], I'm a local kid so it's friendly during the regular season, but it's a little different when you're visiting in this environment. ”
