"The Greatest Human Being In Basketball": Tyrese Haliburton Offers High Praise For Olympic Teammate Steph Curry

After the 2024 Paris Olympics, Tyrese Haliburton was mocked for winning a gold medal despite having limited playing time and posting meager numbers on an otherwise loaded Team USA. No one, however, can take away the personal relationships that Haliburton formed with the members of this Olympic squad.

One of these teammates was Stephen Curry, who took up the lion’s share of minutes at the point guard position. In an appearance on “The Young Man and the Three” podcast, Haliburton didn’t hesitate to offer the highest praise for the Golden State Warriors superstar.

“Steph is the greatest human being I’ve met in basketball,” Haliburton said. “I’ve never met a better person… I’ve never heard anybody say anything bad about Steph as a human being. He is so unbelievable.”

The Indiana Pacers’ floor general, who entered the NBA 11 years after Curry was taken seventh in the 2009 NBA Draft, went on to give examples of Curry’s shining moments off the court.

“He remembers people, he cares about people,” Haliburton recalled. “The Olympic experience, I didn’t play a ton, so a lot of it was for me to learn and pick guys’ brains. Steph was just that guy for me.”

Haliburton added that he especially looked forward to doing workouts with the NBA’s all-time leader in three-pointers made. “Before he would start, if I was on the other end of the gym, he’d be like, ‘Come on, Ty, we’re gonna work out.’ I can’t say enough good things about him.”

It appears, then, that Haliburton had a blast despite playing just three games and averaging only 8.8 minutes per outing on the grand stage of the Olympics. His 2.7 PPG and 0.7 APG were a far cry from his All-Star numbers in the NBA, but clearly, he regarded his stint in Paris as time well spent.

Once upon a time, Haliburton was a youngster who watched a Davidson College sharpshooter take down his home state’s team. Putting this into perspective, the one-time Olympic gold medalist realized how fortunate he’s been.

“For me growing up in Wisconsin, he was at Davidson killing Wisconsin in the [NCAA] tournament,” Haliburton recounted, drawing laughter from the podcast’s hosts. “And now, full circle. For us to have this great relationship, it’s very special.”