Tyrese Haliburton fires back at Wally Szczerbiak who tried disrespecting him on-air: “I was really questioning, who is this?”
New York Knicks color analyst Wally Szczerbiak called Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton a “fake All-Star” and a “wannabe All-Star” during New York's 109-106 win on Sunday. Haliburton shared his thoughts on the former NBA player's words while sitting down with Bleacher Report’s Taylor Rooks.
“I was really questioning, who is this?” Haliburton said.
Only Szczerbiak can clarify his comments, but they appear to be personal and out of line for a professional announcer. It stands to reason that Haliburton doesn’t know much about the former NBA forward. Szczerbiak’s last season in the league was in 2008-09, when Haliburton would have been 8 years old.
Tyrese Haliburton is a third-year player who may be on his way to being named an All-Star this season. He is currently averaging 19.5 points along with 10.7 assists per game, which leads the league. Indiana (15-16), which is in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, has a legitimate shot to make the playoffs after a two-year absence, and a lot of that has to do with the play of Haliburton.
During the game that Szczerbiak was calling, Haliburton had a solid outing, contributing 15 points and 10 assists.
Tyrese Haliburton responds to Wally Szczerbiak calling him a “wannabe All-Star” 👀
(via @taylorrooks) https://t.co/S9sdzz6Ixo
Haliburton and the Pacers will be back in action at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday against the Boston Celtics (22-9). The team will try to stop a two-game losing streak.
Who is Wally Szczerbiak?
When Tyrese Haliburton said he didn’t know who Wally Szczerbiak was, it made sense. Although Szczerbiak did play in the NBA, he wasn’t a superstar. During the last part of Szczerbiak's career, Haliburton hadn’t finished elementary school yet. That being said, Szczerbiak was a decent NBA player.
Szczerbiak played for four teams and had career averages of 14.1 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. He was drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the sixth pick in 1999. He made the 1999-2000 All-Rookie team and was a one-time All-Star selection with the Twolves (in his third season, 2001-02).
During his 10-year career, Szczerbiak was a reliable scorer and shot an impressive 40.6% from the 3-point line. He played in the playoffs seven times, making deep runs twice with the Cleveland Cavaliers and once with Minnesota in 2004. The career was decent but not that memorable.
Szczerbiak was a second-team All-American and the Mid-American Conference Player of the Year in 1998-99 at Miami of Ohio. As a senior, he led the Redhawks to the Sweet 16 as a No. 10 seed. His No. 32 is retired by the school.