Tyrese Haliburton is not a fairy godmother. He's better. Ask these Crispus Attucks players
Tyrese Haliburton is not a fairy godmother. He's never 'poofed' from out of a cloud of magic pixie dust and distributed glass slippers before a royal ball (at least not to our knowledge).
And yet on Thursday, the Indiana Pacers' point guard definitely brought the magic to students at Crispus Attucks High School.
Haliburton, who's helping shepherd the first NBA All-Star Game in Indianapolis since 1985, materialized onto the boys basketball court at Crispus Attucks High School to the stunned surprise of many students, according to a video shared on X (formerly Twitter).
He came bearing smiles, gifts, words of encouragement and — better than glass slippers — Nike-brand basketball shoes. Haliburton teamed up with Dick's Sporting Goods, Pacers Basketball and Nike as a special treat ahead of a championship game Friday between Crispus Attucks and Purdue Poly Englewood.
In addition to new shoes, the boy's team received Nike elite backpacks and Tech-fleece sports jerseys.
"They've got a conference championship tomorrow, so we wanted to hook them up," Haliburton said in the video, telling the students, "We wanted to make sure y'all look good, because when you look good, you feel good, you play good."
As part of the partnership between @Nike & @DICKS, @Pacers All-Star @TyHaliburton22 surprised @Attucks_Sports with brand new Nike gear!! pic.twitter.com/PMyHFZ1PsG
— IPS Athletics (@IPSAthletics) February 15, 2024
Nike representative Gat Bol said Crispus Attucks boy's basketball program has been doing "a great job" with the students and so they wanted to honor them and give the players not just gear, but a chance to hang out with an NBA superstar — no small feat given Haliburton's extremely hectic schedule during the NBA All-Star weekend.
"It's cool to talk to the kids," Haliburton said in the video. "They want to play the game. They want to play one-on-one. It's just cool to hang out with them."
Watch the video here
Tyrese Haliburton teamed up with @nikebasketball to surprise the Crispus Attucks High School boys basketball team with brand new shoes and gear yesterday 👀🔥
"It's just cool to see the kids and get to hang out with them." pic.twitter.com/FIlZD39aUI— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) February 16, 2024
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John Tufts covers trending news for the Indianapolis Star. Send him a news tip at JTufts@Gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Tyrese Haliburton gives boys basketball gifts during NBA All-Star week