Jade Jones, fiancée of Indiana Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton, shared a moving message on Instagram in memory of her late close friend Makenzi Kern. The Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark also responded to Kern's tribute post with a comment of her own.

"Love you always," Clark wrote down in the comment section, expressing her love to Jones and Kern.

Kern tragically passed away on June 8 while celebrating a bachelorette trip in St. Barthelemy, ahead of her wedding planned for later this summer.

The two-time WNBA All-Star Caitlin Clark and NBA All-Star Tyrese Haliburton have been close friends for years. They’ve supported each other by attending games; notably, Clark was present at Game 3 of the 2025 NBA Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers.

Clark and Haliburton, along with their partners, former Iowa Hawkeyes player Connor McCaffery and Jade Jones, maintain a group chat. They are regularly seen showing support for each other during hard times.

When Haliburton tore his right Achilles tendon during the NBA Finals, Clark showed her support by commenting on Jones’ post:

"I love you both. So much to be proud of !!!!" Clark commented on the post.

But how did this long-term friendship start in the first place?

Caitlin Clark's Friends Alongside Her Basketball Journey

Clark's boyfriend, McCaffery, was hired as a player development intern as part of the Pacers' staff.

Since then, Haliburton and McCaffery have talked about Clark's college days at Iowa and how she was emerging as one of the biggest prodigies in women's basketball.

Jones, on the other hand, was from Iowa as well and became a fan of the 2024 Rookie of the Year after seeing her record-breaking performances for Iowa. That is when the four decided to go to dinner and have been friends since then.

Haliburton also told ESPN how the four of them regularly talk and meet each other, despite their busy lives.

"The four of us hang out all the time," Haliburton said. "She goes through a lot, as you know. There's a lot of weight and eyes on her. Obviously, there is on me as well, but hers are amplified times a million."

As in the past few years, Clark has once again shown support during some tough times for the Jones and Haliburton, indicating that she is always there for them, no matter the circumstances.

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Written by

Dhruv Singh

Edited by

Koushik Biswas