'His impact at Arizona was significant': McConnell, Haliburton to be honored by their alma mater
The Pacers will begin a three-game road trip with a detour to Tucson. Plus, Iowa State schedules celebration for Haliburton, McCaffery returns to the Fieldhouse, Calbert Cheaney singled out.
When the Pacers depart Indianapolis Wednesday afternoon following practice, they will be headed to Tucson rather than Phoenix to begin a three-game road trip before Christmas Day.
The Pacers (12-15) have a difficult schedule the next three weeks, both heavy on road games and quality opponents. They’re on the road for six of their next eight games.
For the second consecutive season, a Pacers player is being honored at the University of Arizona. Last January, it was Bennedict Mathurin.
This time, it’s veteran point guard T.J. McConnell.
The Arizona Basketball team is inducting McConnell into their Ring of Honor at the McKale Center on Wednesday night. He’ll be the 34th player to receive the honor. The program has six ways for automatic qualification and one of them is playing 10-plus years in the pros.
For McConnell, 32, this is his 10th season in the NBA.
It’s his sixth in Indiana after going undrafted in 2015 and signing with the Philadelphia 76ers. He has since signed two more contracts with the Pacers, including one this past summer that ties him to the Pacers through the 2028-29 season.
Around 8:45 p.m. ET, there will be a pre-game ceremony on the court before their game against Samford. You can watch on ESPN+.
McConnell will have the support of Pacers coaches, teammates, and staffers on hand for the special event. The first 5,000 fans will received a commemorative McConnell Ring of Honor poster.
Afterward, the team will travel up to Phoenix ahead of Thursday’s game against the Suns on a trip that also stops in Sacramento and San Francisco.
(Click here for a full list of Ring of Honor inductees)
McConnell played two seasons at Duquesne University in his hometown of Pittsburgh after committing while a high school sophomore. Then, after deciding between Arizona, Purdue, and Virginia, he elected to play his final two seasons for coach Sean Miller — also a Pennsylvania guy — at Arizona.
“I get after it defensively and that's what his teams always do,” McConnell said of Miller. “And he said, ‘we're going to get out and run and play fast.’ And that's what we did. And that sold me right away.”
McConnell was a two-time member of the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team and was named First Team All Pac-12 as a senior. And he helped lead the Wildcats to two consecutive Elite Eights in the NCAA Tournament.
Before the NBA season, McConnell joined coach Miller’s podcast for a fun conversation. “From the moment I could walk, there was a ball in my hand and that first stemmed from my dad,” he said.
“… In the McConnell house and at family reunions and everything, it's competitive and it's just basketball.”
Added Miller: “I think his teammates would tell you this: he was our most important player. He was the straw that stirred the drink for us. In those two years, and I think even by Arizona standards, people out there would tell you that those are two great years for the program and T.J. had a lot to do with it. So his impact at Arizona was significant, really significant.”
While I was in Phoenix for WNBA All-Star Weekend last July, I made the two-hour drive down to check out campus. I first knew of the school because 1999 Indiana Mr. Basketball Jason Gardner, who played at my high school (North Central), was an elite point guard for the program.
Then Mathurin and McConnell. And they’re coached by Tommy Lloyd, who had worked with Domantas Sabonis and Andrew Nembhard previously at Gonzaga.
It’s always fun to explore new campuses.
Haliburton to be celebrated at Iowa State
McConnell isn’t the only player set to be honored back in college.
Iowa State University will honor Tyrese Halliburton on March 1, notably when the Cyclones host Arizona. The halftime ceremony at Hilton Coliseum will feature the unveiling of a banner in the rafters as Haliburton becomes the eighth athlete in school history to win a gold medal — as he did this past fall with USA Basketball.
Haliburton’s family plans to attend as well. This will be during a brief break in the Pacers’ schedule when they play six of seven games at home from the All-Star break to the first week in March.
Haliburton had his jersey retired at Oshkosh High School in Wisconsin two years ago.
McCaffery coaches at The Fieldhouse
Gainbridge Fieldhouse hosted the third annual Indy Classic on Saturday. Purdue lost to Texas A&M and then Wisconsin defeated Butler.
On staff at Butler is former Pacers basketball staffer Conner McCaffery. He accepted this job on Thad Matta’s staff after Greg Oden left to pursue a different opportunity.
It was also good to see Pacers video coordinator Martin Tombe and development coordinator Luke Stephens at the Butler game to support their friend.
McCaffery is often at The Fieldhouse as it is, either to watch the Pacers or his girlfriend Caitlin Clark play. They were also there on Monday for Justin Timberlake’s concert.
But Saturday afternoon had to be extra special for him — sitting at the front of the bench while using the same bench as the Pacers, just two years removed from playing at the University of Iowa.
Calbert Cheaney helps with Oumar Ballo’s shot
Since we have a theme here of former University of Arizona players paired with former Pacers staffers, here’s another one for you.
In the offseason, 7-foot center Oumar Ballo transferred to Indiana University after playing the past three years at Arizona. Now he would be coached by Mike Woodson. And on Woodson’s staff is Calbert Cheaney, the Big Ten’s all-time leading scorer in men’s basketball.
Cheaney left the Pacers following the 2022-23 season to join Woodson down at IU. And this year, he’s worked closely with Ballo on his shooting form. Woodson credited Cheaney for playing a major role in Ballo’s move to shoot free throws left-handed.
Ballo, who is averaging 12.7 points and 9.2 rebounds per game while starting in all 11 games, has increased his free throw percentage by almost eight points. Now in his fifth season playing college basketball, it’s just 57.1% — but it’s his second-best season at the line.
Steady improvement.