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Tyrese Haliburton is evolving in real time and he credits Sue Bird for helping

Prince J. Grimes   For The Win

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During the Indiana Pacers' second-round playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Tyrese Haliburton scored just 15 points on 16 shot attempts in Games 3 and 4 combined. In Game 5, he exploded for 31 points on 15 shots to close out the series and send Indiana to its second straight conference finals.

That three-game stretch helps to explain why Haliburton has been one of the most fun yet frustrating players for me to watch over the last couple of years. When he wants to, the talented point guard can absolutely take over a game, with his passing and scoring -- he just hasn't always seemed to want to.

To be fair to Haliburton, being able to flip that switch from playmaker to scorer is an underrated skill -- one we don't talk about nearly enough because only a select few players have to worry about it. Not many are depended on to be their team's best scorer and facilitator. Of those who are, even greats like LeBron James had to learn when to be a little more selfish. Besides, expecting anything more from a dynamic playmaker like Haliburton -- who has the third-most games in NBA history of at least 15 assists and zero turnovers -- is asking a lot.

But heavy is the head that wears the crown. It's a frustration I still find myself carrying with 35-year-old Jimmy Butler, who attempted just 20 combined shots over Golden State's final two playoff games -- even with Stephen Curry out of the lineup. His lack of aggression is part of why the Warriors are sitting home watching the conference finals with the rest of us. Haliburton's tendency to fall back as a scorer is why I thought Indiana would be hitting the couch soon too.

Boy, was I wrong.

Haliburton is turning up his aggression in real time, and it's been a pleasure to watch. He had 32 points on 23 shots in Tuesday's win over the New York Knicks, which gave the Pacers a 3-1 lead. He did that in addition to dishing out 15 assists without a single turnover and grabbing 12 boards for the triple-double.

WHAT THE HALI: 1 stat shows how the Pacers are giving the Knicks trouble

It was a big boy game for Haliburton, who has completely altered his game from the regular season, where he posted his lowest scoring average in three years at 18.6 points to go with 9.2 assists. Even in the first two rounds of the playoffs, he was down to 17.5 points and 9.3 assists. In four conference finals games against the Knicks, though, he's averaging 24.3 points and 11.0 assists. Haliburton is evolving right in front of our eyes.

On Wednesday, we learned that's not by accident. Haliburton knew he needed to be more aggressive, so he reached out to another great point guard to pick her brain on how to pick his spots.

Sue Bird is a four-time champion and the WNBA's all-time assists leader. She also ranks eighth in scoring. If there's anybody who knows a thing or two about choosing when to be aggressive to help their team win, it's her. As revealed by Taylor Rooks in an interview with Bird, Haliburton sought the Hall of Famer's advice on just that during Indiana's first-round series against the Milwaukee Bucks.

Rooks said in a follow-up tweet that Haliburton credits Bird's advice for helping him be more aggressive.

That's super impressive for an All-NBA player like Haliburton to humble himself enough to seek the advice of a retired legend. He also deserves credit for knowing what he needed to take his game to the next level. I don't know what Bird told him, but it must've been some good advice, because the Pacers are just one win from the NBA Finals and his aggression has been the catalyst. If Haliburton keeps it up, the Pacers might just pull off another upset.

No. 1 to No. 1: Blake Griffin's advice for Cooper Flagg

FTW's Bryan Kalbrosky had a chance to sit down with Blake Griffin, and the two talked about everything from Griffin's new role on Amazon's upcoming NBA broadcast to what he's up to these days and who some of his biggest comedy influences are.

Griffin also offered some advice for this year's likely top draft pick, Cooper Flagg, as a former No. 1 pick himself:

"Just enjoy it. It sounds sort of cliché, but it all goes by so quickly. You’ll only experience this draft process one time. Soak it in and don’t get too weighed down with all the other stuff. All the people around you will take care of all that. Just enjoy every single moment. Remember, this is just the beginning. 

As a young guy, you want everything right away. You want to get to everything. But your career is a marathon. Enjoy it. Appreciate all the hard work you’ve done to get to this point. Know that it continues."

Check out the full Q&A with Griffin here.

Shootaround

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