In an Olympic basketball team full of superstars, some of them will be the underdogs – for Team USA, these were Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton.
Tatum’s lack of playing time was quite surprising considering that less than two months ago he won the NBA Finals with the Boston Celtics and signed the most lucrative contract in NBA history.
Haliburton – not so much. On a team with LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Joel Embiid, when rotations were limited towards the end, Haliburton simply didn’t have a place on the court.
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Tyrese Haliburton of the USA warms up during the quarterfinal match between the USA and Brazil on day 11 of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at Bercy Arena on August 6, 2024 in Paris. (Marvin Ibo Guengoer – GES Sportfoto/Getty Images)
However, his resume still says “Olympic Champion,” even though he only played 8.8 minutes per game in the three competitions he played.
Haliburton was the target of numerous jokes about his playing time throughout the Olympics and was not afraid to poke fun at himself over the weekend.
After receiving his gold medal, Haliburton took a selfie with it and showed it to X to get some laughs from his followers.
“When you do nothing on the group project and still get an A,” he wrote with a gold medal emoji.
Tyrese Haliburton of the U.S. men’s national team poses for portraits with the gold medal at the hotel in Paris on August 10, 2024. (Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
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The USA barely held on to Nikola Jokić and Serbia in the semifinals, and although the gold medal match against hosts France was close, Stephen Curry performed to his liking to secure the United States’ fourth consecutive gold medal.
Haliburton now turns his attention to his Indiana Pacers, who lost to the Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals.
Anthony Edwards, No. 5, Jrue Holiday, No. 12, Tyrese Haliburton, No. 9, and Anthony Davis, No. 14 of Team USA celebrate from the bench during a men’s basketball semifinal game between Team USA and Team Serbia on the thirteenth day of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at Bercy Arena on August 8, 2024 in Paris. (Sarah Bull/Getty Images)
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Last season, he averaged 20.1 points and 10.9 assists per game – his personal best and NBA record.
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