Iowa State freshman guard Tyrese Haliburton’s first season of college basketball has been unique.

Less than four months after thinking he might redshirt the 2018-19 season, Haliburton is now a starter for a top 25 team. His 17 assists against Southern on Dec. 9, 2018, set a new school record.

Perhaps it shouldn’t be a surprise that Haliburton and coach Steve Prohm have been forced to have unique conversations this season.

“Me and coach [Prohm] had a meeting the other day and he was telling me ‘this isn’t a conversation I usually have with people this far into the season,'” Haliburton said. “But I guess if that’s my only problem right now, I’ll take it.”

That problem? Haliburton often seems averse to shooting the ball.

Haliburton is 21-of-43 from beyond the 3-point line in Big 12 play, good for second in the league in 3-point percentage (48.8 percent). His true shooting percentage, which weighs 3-pointers heavier than 2-pointers, sits at 70.0 for the season, good for fifth in the country.

Still, Haliburton prefers to pass.

“Sometimes in practice he has wide open shots and he won’t take the shot,” said sophomore guard Lindell Wigginton. “So we get on him to take the shot. He still doesn’t take the shots we want him to take, but that’s just him. He likes to pass the ball. I think he should be more aggressive to shoot the ball but that’s just his game.”

The willingness to pass hasn’t hurt the Cyclones too much, as the team has a 19-7 record and the 10th best offense in the nation, according to KenPom. 

“You can tell him to shoot, too,” Prohm said. “We’ve all told him. Teammates tell him, we tell him, you can tell him. Put up a big article that says ‘SHOOT’ across the headline.

“He’s got a floater, he just loves to pass. We’ve talked to him about he’s got to be more aggressive. I think that’ll help everybody.”

Haliburton took five shots against Baylor on Tuesday, going 3-of-4 from 3-point range, finishing with nine points in 35 minutes.

In his last three games, Haliburton has played 101 minutes, scoring 12 points on 4-of-10 shooting.

“Usually he says ‘I didn’t know I was that open, coach.’” Prohm said. “He’s just been really good for this team though. Just in his personality and his character, being really selfless. He’s a great fit from that standpoint.

“You’ve got guys like Marial, Lindell, Talen, it’s in their blood to score. He’s kind of a good complement with that.”

Even former players have noticed Haliburton’s unwillingness to fire away.

When former Cyclone guard and current Denver Nugget Monte Morris returned to Ames for Tuesday’s game, he said he saw a lot of himself in Haliburton.

“He’s really good,” Morris said. “He’s taller than me but we have the same body just cause we’re real thin. Great IQ, great feel for the game.

“I asked him why he doesn’t shoot the ball more because he’s got great percentages.”

Haliburton’s 17 assists against Southern topple his scoring career-high of 16 points against Nebraska-Omaha, which is a feat no Cyclone starter in recent history has accomplished (as far back as game-by-game data is available from Sports-Reference and KenPom). There are still several games to be played, but as of now, Haliburton is in rare company.

Haliburton knows he has the green light from his coaches and teammates. They want him to shoot more, given his high percentages and ability to knock down shots from deep beyond the 3-point line.

“Yeah, for me, I’ve never had a problem with that,” Wigginton said with a laugh. “I’m not passing up open shots.”

It comes down to his ability to remain efficient while still taking more shots. His assist-to-turnover ratio and rebounding numbers are great for his position and class, Prohm said.

“The TCU game when we were making the comeback I got kicked up to on the fastbreak and I didn’t take that one, and we ended up turning it over,” Haliburton said. “That one stung a bit. I know I can make that shot and I do it all the time, so to not take the one when it mattered like that, it usually irritates me a little bit.”