Tyrese Haliburton knew exactly what he wanted to do.As the final seconds ticked off the clock in Game 1 of the 2025 Eastern Conference finals and his Indiana Pacers trailing by two points, Haliburton dribbled toward the rim before deciding on something even better. He backpedaled toward the 3-point line and launched a rainbow over New York Knicks big man Mitchell Robinson. As the red light around the backboard flashed and 0.0 appeared on the clock, the ball bounced high off the back plate and fell through the net like a penny from heaven.A wild celebration erupted as Pacers players and staffers raced out to the floor to mob Haliburton, believing in the moment they had witnessed the game-winning shot.Haliburton, who had already run to the other side of the court, immediately wrapped his hands around his neck in his own celebration. He wanted to honor all-time Pacers great Reggie Miller, who sat courtside broadcasting the game for TNT Sports and had made the same gesture during Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Knicks 31 years earlier.Thursday marks the one-year anniversary of Haliburton — still rehabbing from the torn Achilles he suffered in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals — hitting what was ultimately ruled a game-tying shot after review, but still became one of the defining moments of the postseason.Haliburton’s willingness to embrace the moment — and the role of the villain in front of a hostile crowd — did not come by accident. The then fifth-year pro’s showmanship was shaped through years of watching professional wrestling. He grew up wanting to be the bad guy. He spent time perfecting what he wanted to say, how he wanted to act and learning from the performers he saw each week on the screen.As his basketball career blossomed, he folded those lessons on television into his own persona on the floor. It was why he felt so comfortable leaning into the heel role in that moment at Madison Garden and why he doesn’t shy away from being the “bad guy” whenever the Pacers hit the road.“I think I’ve just grown a reputation in our league,” Haliburton told The Athletic earlier this season. “Like when we go on the road — I talk s—, I am who I am, and I think on the road it’s easy to say that I’m the bad guy and at home it’s easy to say I’m the good guy, so I think it just depends where we are. But I would say anything that’s not Indiana, I’m probably the bad guy.”Haliburton touched on a variety of topics that day centered around his love for wrestling – and how that passion helped shape the performer he has become in the NBA. As he makes his way back to the floor, the anniversary of his unforgettable shot against the Knicks serves as a reminder that his skills on the court — and on the mic — will soon return to NBA arenas.It’s also a reminder that seeds of the rivalry between Haliburton, Jalen Brunson and the Knicks were planted inside a wrestling ring.Editor’s note: Questions have been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.Why do you think wrestling has gotten so big?I think there’s a growing mainstream popularity within it. It used to be like, I don’t want to say not cool, but everybody goes through the same phase, right? When you’re super young you like it, then you find out John Cena’s not actually dying. He’s not actually so hurt that he can’t move.Undertaker’s not actually …He’s not actually dead. And so, it becomes not cool. But I think everybody gets to a phase where you’re like, “OK, you either start watching it again or you don’t.” And I got to a phase where I started watching again. I think people enjoy it because it’s becoming more mainstream. More of the wrestlers are acting and doing so many different things that it’s become part of pop culture even more than ever before.