Knicks legend stunned by Tyrese Haliburton's sudden voice flip while discussing Pacers' shortcomings

Tyrese Haliburton is quite good at surprising people, whether it's with a pass delivered at an awkward angle or an incredibly clutch shot that puts the Indiana Pacers ahead towards the end of a game. Haliburton doesn't just shock the world with his deeds on the hardcourt, though. He's capable of doing this off the court as well.

During the post-game media availability following Game 3 of the Pacers-Knicks series, Haliburton appeared to shift his vocal tone in mid-sentence while discussing his team's flaws. Among the netizens who reacted to this peculiarity was Knicks legend Stephon Marbury, who was wondering if the Haliburton clip was 100% genuine.

"Is this AI?" Marbury asked.

Stephon Marbury wonders whether a clip of Tyrese Haliburton speaking was generated by AI. Credit:Courtside Buzz/IG

Marbury might be surprised to find out that Haliburton has done this multiple times in the past. Though it could be jarring to hear the shifts in Haliburton's vocal delivery, a scientific explanation has actually been put forward by an expert.

When ESPN consulted laryngology expert Dr. Michael Johns last year to ask about Haliburton's voice, Dr. Johns pointed to the noisy environment in which basketball players have to orally communicate.

"Athletes are using their voice a lot, and they're using their voice loudly," Johns said at the time. "There's a huge amount of noise around them...And so they, like other vocal athletes, can develop some injury to their vocal folds, vocal nodules."

Given the leadership role of Haliburton as the Pacers' floor general, his vocal apparatus has certainly been pushed to the limit in this year's playoffs. The question, then, is whether Haliburton will be able to sustain the high volume of his voice as the playoffs begin to wrap up.

Tyrese Haliburton voices out displeasure with fourth-quarter performance in Game 3

Outside the vocal shifts in his post-game interview on Sunday, Haliburton was crystal clear about what the Pacers need to do differently in Game 4. The leader that he is, Haliburton took himself to task as well.

"I felt like I did a poor job of keeping pace in the game, especially in the fourth," he told reporters following Game 3. "I felt like I was walking the ball up every play." [Timestamp - 2:21]

While Haliburton's tone changes appear to be incidental, he and the rest of the Pacers will have to make deliberate adjustments if they want to seize a commanding 3-1 lead in Game 4.