OSHKOSH – Indiana Pacers guard and Oshkosh North alum Tyrese Haliburton was back in the Oshkosh North gym on a summer day. It was like he was back in elementary school or middle school just at another basketball camp.
But this time, at the CareSource Tyrese Haliburton Impact Camp, campers wore shirts with Haliburton’s likeness on them in Indiana Pacers colors.
“I grew up going to North basketball camp from the time I was in first grade to the rest of my life essentially,” Haliburton said. “I have a lot of memories in this gym, so I keep joking with these kids, I’m like, ‘If there’s anywhere I feel like I’m not going to miss it’s in this building right here.’”
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It’s the third summer in a row that Haliburton has hosted a camp at Oshkosh North and each year he’s come back after a major life event. The first summer he returned after winning a gold medal at the Olympics, last summer he was coming off a trip to the NBA Finals where he suffered a torn Achilles tendon and was walking around the camp in a walking boot. This year he returned, not long after getting married.
“I think there’s nothing like being home. I only get to really come here one to two times a year. When I am able to, I just like to enjoy it, see as many people as I can, whether that’s coaches, teachers, whatever the case may be,” Haliburton said.
There was no walking boot this year, as Haliburton wore the Oshkosh North player exclusive edition of his signature shoe, the PUMA Hali 1. He wasn’t the only one wearing them, and many other campers came ready to show that they were in his shoes in all different colorways.
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“For as long as my line is being created, we will always do a North colorway. That’s very important, it goes to my roots of home. What’s special is these are a pair that were only for Oshkosh North basketball players and to see all these kids wearing them, that means a lot to me,” Haliburton said. “It’d be easy for these kids to put them up somewhere and not wear them. I want them to be worn, they’re basketball shoes.
“A lot of these kids are like, ‘Yo, let me design a color, like I want this color, that color.’ And that’s really cool.”
Being back in Oshkosh has also meant that Haliburton has been able to see how Oshkosh North is using the donation he announced last summer. From the new scoreboard to a new weight room, signage for the Frank Schade fieldhouse and even more, Haliburton is also reaping the benefits.
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“Yesterday I probably had my first lift in the weight room since it’s been redone so that’s special as well. The district, (Oshkosh North Athletics and Activities coordinator) Craig Lieder, basketball coach (Brad) Weber, they’ve all done a great job communicating with me, getting my input on things,” Haliburton said. “There’s some like as minimal as there’s a control box over there that can raise every hoop and put every hoop down all at once which is special because growing up I used to have to watch coach Schade walk around to get every hoop down individually.”
It wouldn’t be a trip back to Oshkosh or Wisconsin without going to some of his favorite spots or driving around and seeing past teachers, coaches or parents of friends. Haliburton fueled up on a Kwik Trip breakfast sandwich before talking to media and shared that he was at Leon’s Frozen Custard on his Instagram story on Thursday night.
“Every street reminds me of something different,” Haliburton said. “There’s a lot of different places, but the main ones I’d probably say are Leon’s, of course, because I have to go there every time and I always tell people Kwik Trip is my happy place. So those are the two ones that probably make me feel the most at home.”
Contact or send game stats/info to Ben Schultz at BSchultz@usatodayco.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @benschultz52.
This article originally appeared on Oshkosh Northwestern: NBA star Tyrese Haliburton returns to Oshkosh roots