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UPDATE: Jan. 6, 8:22 p.m. — Haliburton is available to play in Wednesday’s game vs. the Bulls. He’s missed the past two games due to a wrist injury and will likely return to his role off the bench. Haliburton won’t have a minutes restriction.
Sacramento Kings rookie guard Tyrese Haliburton is questionable to play in Wednesday’s game vs. the Chicago Bulls after missing the past two games due to a wrist injury. Prior to the injury, Haliburton had been getting praises around the league for his play through five games off the bench. Haliburton is averaging 10.6 points and 4.4 assists per game with an 18.59 PER.
With Haliburton out, Cory Joseph and Kyle Guy have been getting more run off the bench. That will likely change unless Haliburton is on a minutes restriction, which could be the case considering what he means for the franchise moving forward. Joseph has sort of been a trainwreck off the bench, though, so coach Luke Walton may want to get Haliburton back in there as soon as possible.
Early on in the NBA Rookie of the Year race, Haliburton has shot up to 5/1 to win the award, fourth-best odds on DraftKings Sportsbook. His competition is Anthony Edwards, James Wiseman and LaMelo Ball. All three players have started to get more comfortable in the NBA. Haliburton may not have a big enough role to beat out the rest of the favorites but he’s impressed enough to have a shot at being a finalist. None of the three players ahead of him have really separated themselves in the race, so it’s still wide open.