INDIANAPOLIS — Pacers All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton has received a warning from the NBA about his somewhat vulgar celebration dance after his game-winning 3-pointer to beat the Cavaliers in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Tuesday, but he will not be fined according to a league source. The news was first reported by Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press.
Haliburton got his own rebound off a missed free throw and stepped back beyond the 3-point arc to hit the game-winner with 1.1 seconds to go to give the Pacers a 120-119 win. He turned around and let his hands hang down below his waist and cupped them to suggest he was carrying an enlarged part of the male anatomy. It’s a celebration that was brought to the NBA by long-time point guard Sam Cassell, who played in the league from 1993-2008, but he got the idea from the 1994 baseball comedy movie Major League II.
Haliburton said after the game that he was waiting for the right moment for the celebration. He pulled it off after the Pacers came back from down 20 points in the third quarter and down seven with 48 seconds to play. He also did it in Cleveland, home of the baseball team formerly known as the Indians, the protagonist team in both Major League and Major League II.
LeBron James, Eddie House, Julius Randle and Fred VanVleet have been fined for the what the NBA refers to as an “obscene gesture,” according to The Associated Press.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton warned but not fined for celebration dance after Game 2 vs Cavs
Reporting by Dustin Dopirak, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
