NBA: Tyrese Haliburton says fan directed racial slur at his brother

Indiana Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton reacts to his three pointer during the second half of Game 2 of the first round NBA playoff basketball series against the Milwaukee Bucks Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Milwaukee.The Pacers won 125-108 to tie the series 1-1. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

MILWAUKEE— Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton said a fan directed a racial slur at his younger brother during Game 1 of an Eastern Conference first-round NBA playoff series with the Milwaukee Bucks.

“My little brother in the stands the other day was called an N-word,” Haliburton said after the Pacers’ 125-108 Game 2 victory over the Bucks on Tuesday night.

“It was important for us as a family to just address that. That was important for us to talk about because that didn’t sit right with anybody in our family. It’s just been important to have my family here right now, and my little brother’s handled that the right way.”

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The Bucks were asked about Haliburton’s comments after Tuesday’s game.

“An arena guest services representative reported that during Sunday’s game a few guests were not sitting in their correct seats,” a Bucks spokesman responded. “The guest services representative asked the group to move one section over to their correct seats. Then, one of the individuals in the group claimed to the representative that a person sitting in front of him had used a derogatory term toward him. The accused person denied the accusation. The group moved to their correct seats and no further incident was reported.

“We take our fan environment extremely seriously and are committed to providing a safe and secure experience.”

Haliburton was making his playoff debut in his home state. He grew up and went to high school in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, about 90 miles northwest of Milwaukee.

The Bucks had beaten the Pacers 109-94 in Game 1 on Sunday before Indiana evened the series Tuesday. Game 3 is Friday at Indianapolis.