Tyrese Haliburton Spoke to LeBron James, Carmelo, Wade About 2024 Olympics Benching

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Tyrese Haliburton won his first Olympic gold medal with Team USA over the summer, but the Indiana Pacers star didn't get to contribute as much as he would have liked.

Haliburton appeared in just three games and played 26 minutes combined throughout the Olympics. That's a major adjustment for a workhorse who played 32.2 minutes per game for Indiana last season.

In an interview with The Athletic's James Boyd, Haliburton explained how it felt being benched.

"No, I never had that experience in my life," he said. "I think these are special circumstances, being surrounded by 11 of the greatest players in the world, so that's all a part of it."

The 24-year-old said he confided in a group of Team USA legends who once were in a similar position to him.

"For me, when you look at something like that, everybody has had to pay their dues at some point," Haliburton said. "I had a lot of conversations with (LeBron James), (Dwyane) Wade and (Carmelo Anthony) out there. Those guys all played in the 2004 Olympics and didn't really get to play a ton or as much as they wanted to. They kind of got a little taste of being benched."

While he didn't play much of a role on the court, ultimately Haliburton has something no one can take away from him: a gold medal.

"So, I think it's all a part of it. I'm not bigger than any one group, and I'm not too proud to check my ego at the door for a bigger goal," he said. "We won a gold medal, and I get to tell my kids that I was a part of one of the greatest teams ever assembled."

After Team USA won gold, Haliburton didn't have a bad attitude about his limited minutes. Instead, he leaned into the joke on social media.

Haliburton's time to lead Team USA will come. He will be 28 the next time Team USA puts together a squad for the Olympics, and if his career trajectory continues he'll likely be one of the first calls to join the team.

Haliburton is coming off the best seasons of his career, putting up 20.1 points and leading the league in assists with 10.9 per game. He took the Pacers to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2014 but ultimately came up short of bringing home a championship.