Pacers player Tyrese Haliburton officially named to 2024 Paris Olympics roster

Team USA has a new floor general, and his name is Tyrese Haliburton.

Following a solid performance in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, Tyrese Haliburton's name was in strong consideration for another Team USA nod, this time for the biggest stage possible, the Summer Olympics. After a fourth-place finish in said 2023 World Cup, Team USA planned a different approach to their 2024 roster. In a Redeem Team-esque move, some of the biggest American basketball stars planned to return to the Olympics to bring the gold medal back to America.

Currently, Team USA's roster is the best it's been in years, with old legends returning such as Steph Curry, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum, and even Joel Embiid, who had American and French team options. This cast doubt over Haliburton's potential involvement, as it was very possible he could miss the cut if players like Kyrie Irving decided to return as well.

However, Haliburton ended up being one of the 11 players selected so far, with one spot left to be decided soon. While some were puzzled over Haliburton's inclusion over Jalen Brunson of the Knicks, a fellow 2023 team selection, it was clear that Team USA needs more playmaking at this point, as they have all the scoring they need with the aforementioned players, as well as Devin Booker, Anthony Davis, and Anthony Edwards.

Haliburton will most likely not see too much playing time on the big stage but will be called upon plenty for his stellar playmaking ability and occasionally for his scoring, as he averaged eight points and 5.6 assists in only 21 minutes in the FIBA games last year.

Additionally, Haliburton also scored 18 points against Italy, all on three-pointers, as he shot 47% from deep through all the games, as well as leading the team in steals as well with 1.5 and recording a surprising 1.1 blocks per game.

Team USA's roster is of course, not finalized yet, as they still have one spot remaining, so it will be interesting to see where they go with this spot. They can either go for more guard play and scoring in Jalen Brunson, or another route, with more defense or big-man play. Either way, the most important thing for Pacers fans is that Tyrese Haliburton made the team, and will be fighting for a gold medal two years in a row.