After a weekend of preparing for the upcoming FIBA World Cup by competing against fellow countrymen, namely the members of USA Select squad, Tyrese Haliburton and Team USA will play their first exhibition game against... more fellow countrymen... ish. Tonight's foes hail from the island nation – sorry, "territory appurtenant and belonging to the United States, but not a part of the United States within the revenue clauses of the Constitution" – of Puerto Rico... long story short: Team USA is playing Team Puerto Rico.

Ambiguous sovereignty aside, the Boriquas will provide a good first test for Team USA. While Jose Alvarado is out rehabbing a tibia injury that has seen him sidelined since February, Puerto Rico is headlined by Tremont Waters, Ismael Romero, Christopher Ortiz, and George Conditt. Even without NBA star-power, PR has a rich basketball culture and is consistently one of the best teams in the Americas. Tonight's game is a tune up for the Boriquas as well, as they will also be heading to Manila for the FIBA World Cup later this month, competing in Group B.

Much to (what I imagine is) the dismay of the members of this site – and to the certain relief of a particular Knicks commentator with surplus of "Z's" in his last name – Haliburton will play backup to Jalen Brunson in the upcoming tournament. Though Head Coach Steve Kerr has said that his lineups are not yet set in stone, based on his rotations and comments over the weekend, Brunson's status as the starting point guard seems settled.

In both games against the Select Squad, Kerr started Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Brandon Ingram, and Indy's own Jaren Jackson, Jr. The one change Kerr made was replacing Cam Johnson with Anthony Edwards in the second game. Furthermore, Kerr raved about Brunson's presence, saying "“I think Jalen is such a natural leader and because he’s a point guard, you know, he immediately comes to mind. He’s the one who’s leading the, you know, ‘1, 2, 3 USA’ chant.”

Nevertheless, there's no need to create a rivalry where none exists (despite how naturally that inclination comes when the rivalry involves the Knicks). Tyrese Haliburton will play a key role for the team regardless of whether he starts or comes off the bench. Kerr believes that Team USA's biggest strength is its unselfishness and ability to find the open man. Of course, he specifically mentioned Haliburton's innate passing prowess when making that point.

While it's not Pacers basketball, tonight is our first look at Tyrese since he signed his whopper of an extension. At this point in the off-season, where any mention of basketball is cause for salivation, I'm viewing the World Cup as nothing less than red meat. If you feel the same way, join me in the comments as we savor what is hopefully a preview of the dominance Haliburton is about to unleash on the league during the upcoming NBA season.

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