NBA Playoffs MVP Power Rankings: Young guard trumps MVP winner for first place

5. Tyrese Haliburton

Last rank: N/A

In his first playoff run of his short career, Tyrese Haliburton has been the definition of an up-and-down player. In the Indiana Pacers' first-round matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks, Haliburton, and the Pacers' offense couldn't hit the broad side of a barn let alone defend a cone in the open floor. Since squeaking out the Bucks in six games, Haliburton and the Pacers have turned it up a notch.

Against the New York Knicks, nobody gave the Pacers a chance to win the series. They not only beat the Knicks in seven games but embarrassed New York in the final two games of the series. Haliburton proved why he could lead his squad to a championship title in those final two games.

After going down 0-2 in their second-round matchup with the Knicks, Haliburton turned up his play and looked like the All-NBA players fans have come to know.

In the series-defining Game 7 win, Haliburton ignited for a huge 26-point performance including nailing six 3-pointers down when the final buzzer rang. Haliburton finished the Knicks off with a massive performance and let the New York crowd hear it all game long.

Despite beating the Knicks in seven games, they will have an even tougher opponent on Tuesday with the Boston Celtics. Both Haliburton and Pascal Siakam will need to have a massive series if the Pacers want to have any shot at making the NBA Finals.