FIBA World Cup 2023: Thriving Tyrese Haliburton sets sight on next basketball dream - “Three Olympics, that would be the goal”
In an exclusive interview with Olympics.com, Indiana Pacer Haliburton shared his Team USA ambitions, the support network he is playing for and how he feels about all those who ever underestimated him.
Basketball
When you’re a part of the USA Basketball men’s team competing on the international stage, two things are assumed.
The first is that you’ll win gold.
The second is that - while you may be the star in your NBA team - when you don the US jersey, you become part of a constellation and might not be the guiding light.
Understanding the scope of the role required is paramount, particularly at a FIBA World Cup where team chemistry can be the margin of difference, and one player embracing that responsibility for Team USA is Tyrese Haliburton.
“With the talent that we have on our roster, my job is to be more of a playmaker all the time,” Haliburton told Olympics.com in an exclusive interview. “Whereas during the season I have to find the balance between playmaking and scoring.
“You know what to expect a little bit, but it's always different. It's just not what you're accustomed to game-wise,” he continued. “It’s just basketball, at the end of the day. And we’re doing really well.”
As far as sticking to the task at hand, the 23-year-old Indiana Pacer certainly has been performing his role dutifully.
In each of the USA's group games, he has come off the bench and slipped into the conductor role with relative ease, averaging 8.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 4 assists.
Tyrese Haliburton: "I do enjoy proving people wrong"
Haliburton has never been short of confidence in his ability despite running into doubters at every turn.
With his father a basketball coach, hoops was like the North Star for Haliburton: “I always played basketball video games. We had a basketball hoop in my driveway, a little basketball hoop in my house - basketball was everything.”
His mother was every bit as passionate in supporting his dreams, driving him and his teammates to games and attending any she could just to watch him take to the court, and Haliburton never faltered on his path.
“I think it's a theme in my life a little bit,” he admitted.
From being told in elementary school his NBA aspirations were a little far-fetched to being called a 'wannabe fake All-Star', he is used to being underestimated.
But now back in a USA jersey having signed a five-year, $260million maximum contract extension with the Pacers after his first All-Star season, Haliburton is the one smiling.
“When you're a kid and you're from a small town, I think they put restrictions on your vision or your dreams. That's why I always say, 'I hope everybody just chases their dreams and does what they want to do,'" he continued.
“I have little wins every day. You know, there are little moments. I care more about proving myself right and proving people wrong.
"My whole life has been like, 'This is what I'm going to do.' And so, when I do it, it's more about how I feel internally and how I feel about it than proving people wrong,” he said, before adding with his trademark grin, “But I do enjoy proving people wrong at the same time."
Tyrese Haliburton: "I try not to put too much pressure on things"
Wanting to deliver big – even when people believe he might not - speaks a little to the broader mission that is central to Haliburton’s story.
For every second-place trophy his dad threw out to fuel his drive, to the away games his mum would have to get on a plane to go and watch him compete in, Haliburton feels deeply the sacrifices of his parents, family and friends, to get him to where he is now.
They are also what help him keep perspective on things within the world of basketball, particularly when it comes to outside noise and expectations.
“I think that a big part of it is I've always said this is a sport, and at the end of the day it's not my life,” Haliburton said explaining his outlook.
“I love basketball, I'm obsessed with it, but it isn't the most important thing in my life. I have a family to take care of and there are real, meaningful life things. So, for me, this is just something I really love to do; it's something I'm really passionate about but I try not to put too much pressure on things because this is such a different form of pressure compared to real-life things that go on for people.
“Right now, basketball is a very important thing in my life. That's where a lot of my focus is on a daily basis. But I know that you can only do this for so long so when I'm done playing, there are other things that will have to be taken care of,” Haliburton continued.
“Making sure everybody in my life is good and taken care of. Because everybody sacrificed a lot for me to follow mine. So now it's kind of my turn. How can I help?”
Tyrese Haliburton: "My dream would be to be able to play three Olympics"
Haliburton has his family supporting him in Manila and said his now-retired mum had planned the trip well before his official call-up to USA’s 12-man roster.
The point guard is taking the opportunity to shine on the international stage and hopes to do so many more times in the future.
“My dream would be to be able to play three Olympics,” Haliburton said resolutely. “That would be the goal, but obviously I’ve got to play one first.
“My earliest memories are the Redeem Team in '08. Watching all those games, I feel like that's right around when I really became a basketball junkie. I really watched a lot of it.
“It's definitely something I've always wanted to do. I wasn't old enough to watch the '04 Olympics, but since then the United States has won every Olympics: ‘08, ‘12, ‘16 and ‘21. So for me, I just want to be a part of that and want to have a piece of that.”
The journey towards the goal has already begun for Haliburton. The World Cup in Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines is the first junction at which the USA can secure their place in the upcoming Games in Paris.
And while those Olympic aspirations are at the forefront of his mind, there is another job to do first.
"My biggest thing is I just want to take care of what's in front of me. And I think everything in the future will take care of itself. I'm a part of the team right now. How do we win gold right now?”