USA Bench Warmer’s Hilarious Response to Winning a Gold Medal

Tyrese Haliburton is an Olympic gold medalist. He's also a good sport.

The Indiana Pacers All-Star guard played in only three games for the United States at the Paris Olympics, logging a grand total of 26 minutes and scoring just eight points in the entire tournament.

Left out of the equation in Steve Kerr's rotation "math problem" in determining who plays and who sits, Haliburton watched from the bench for the second-straight game on Sunday, as Team USA beat France 98-87 to win Paris Olympics gold.

Haliburton never got to remove his warmups, but he had a great seat at Bercy Arena to witness the greatness of Stephen Curry, whose late 3-point barrage held off Victor Wembanyama and the French. Afterward, Haliburton displayed his gold medal on social media with the utmost humility.

Feeling proud but also poking fun at himself, Haliburton posted a photo of his medal draped around his neck and the following caption: "When you ain't do nun on the group project and still get an A."

Playing time was always going to be an issue with a USA roster stacked with former NBA MVPs and current All-Stars. Jayson Tatum's inconsistent minutes became a persistent talking point around the belief that the Boston Celtics star and first-team All-NBA selection deserved better from head coach Steve Kerr.

What was being ignored is that Tatum's (and Haliburton's) time will come. The Paris Games were the Olympic swan song for Curry, Kevin Durant and LeBron James (we think). The next Summer Olympics will surely feature America's next generation of NBA stars.

Haliburton, Tatum and Anthony Edwards are all 26 years old or younger. By the time the Los Angeles Games roll around in 2028, Team USA will belong to them.

And if the U.S. wins its sixth-consecutive Olympics, Haliburton will likely have played a crucial role. He could post another photo on X with his second gold medal, too — but without the self-deprecating humor.