All indicators level to Kevin Durant enjoying in Crew USA’s 2024 Paris Olympics opener in opposition to Serbia on Sunday. The veteran Suns ahead’s standing for the opener was doubtful after he missed all 5 of Crew USA’s exhibition contests within the lead-up to the Video games with a calf pressure.
Nonetheless, Durant was a full participant in a scrimmage on Thursday and deliberate to follow on Saturday, revealed Crew USA head coach Steve Kerr.
“We’ll see how issues go in follow [on Saturday],” Kerr informed reporters on Friday, through USA At the moment. “To this point so good. He got here by the scrimmage two days in the past fairly effectively. …Having coached him earlier than, he is one of many few guys I have been round who can step again out on the courtroom and appear to be Kevin Durant, a participant of his caliber. Most gamers it will take a while to get your rhythm again, and it’ll, too, for him to a sure extent. However he is fairly particular.”
Durant is “fairly particular” certainly. The sharpshooting star is making an attempt to change into the primary males’s basketball participant in historical past to win 4 gold medals (Carmelo Anthony is tied with three), and the primary male athlete to win 4 gold medals in any workforce sport on the Olympics.
The 2-time NBA champion is already the main scorer in Crew USA historical past, with 435 complete factors from his three earlier Olympic campaigns in 2012, 2016 and 2020. In Paris, Durant will get an opportunity so as to add to his report tally, and doubtlessly problem Lisa Leslie’s report (489) for many Olympic factors throughout each women and men in Crew USA historical past.
As such, quite a bit is at stake for Durant, who can additional enrich his legacy on the Paris Video games.
If Durant does swimsuit up in opposition to Serbia, he’ll seemingly come off the bench, particularly with Crew USA discovering stability in a beginning 5 of Stephen Curry, Devin Booker, Jrue Vacation, LeBron James and Joel Embiid. Kerr mentioned he has “but to decide” on Durant’s position upon return from harm.
