Tyrese Haliburton played his first game in more than 16 months Wednesday night, helping the Indiana Pacers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 123-112 in a preseason opener at Iowa State.

Haliburton had seven points on 3-of-8 shooting, six assists, two blocks and one steal in 16 minutes. He had been out since tearing his right Achilles in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals.

"It's the first game, but it's got to slow down," said Haliburton. "There was just a lot of adrenaline. I was hyped to be out there, excited, but I just got to slow down a little bit."

Haliburton compared himself to a rookie, however, he said he could still read the floor at his normal pace even though his body was moving too quickly.

The game was played at Iowa State, where Haliburton starred from 2018 to 2020, was originally scheduled for the 2025 preseason before being pushed back a year.

Haliburton bought out the student sections at both ends of Hilton Coliseum to create a college atmosphere.

"It's the loudest preseason game I've ever been a part of," said Haliburton.

Haliburton played all 16 of his minutes in the first half. In the fourth quarter, fans chanted for him to return, and he pointed to the sandals he had changed into.

Haliburton said he was not tempted to go back in.

"Hell no," said Haliburton. "I appreciate that the students wanted that as they should, but we have a process."