The biggest outstanding question facing the U.S. men's basketball team ahead of these Olympics has been answered: Kevin Durant will be available for Team USA's Group C opener against Serbia on Sunday at 11:15 a.m. ET, per an official announcement from USA Basketball.
Durant has been sidelined since suffering a calf strain in June, missing all five of the U.S.'s pre-Paris tune-up games. It's unclear just how effective he'll be or how many minutes he'll be able to play, especially early on. But Durant did participate in practices and a scrimmage earlier in the week, and Steve Kerr sounded optimistic when asked about his star on Saturday, saying, “I’m confident we’ll have everybody ready."
Durant, for his part, has been trying to soak in the atmosphere despite his injury.
“It’s been incredible,” Durant said. “I mean, I haven’t played yet, but just being on the sideline, on the bench, I’ve got more energy than I’ve had in the past. I hate not playing, but just watching these guys, how they operate, it’s just been incredible.”
It's hard to overstate the impact Durant's return would have on a U.S. team shooting for a historic fifth straight gold medal in Paris. KD has his fingerprints all over the U.S. Olympic record book: He's the men's team's all-time leading scorer, and he's seeking to become the first player who can claim four Olympic men's basketball golds. Facing a field with more NBA talent than any other in Olympic history, Durant's scoring and versatility will be key to a successful gold-medal defense — a fact not lost on the rest of the star-studded roster.
“Instant impact. Instant impact,” LeBron James said when asked about what Durant means to the U.S. team. “He looked extremely well the other day in practice. Obviously, his wind, his rhythm is going to continue to come, but to be able to get him back, it makes a huge impact for our club.”
Durant could be particularly valuable in the marquee matchup against Serbia, one in which the U.S. can ill-afford the sort of offensive slumps that have dogged it over the past month or so. KD's return could help ease some of the playmaking burden on lead guards Steph Curry and Anthony Edwards, whose performances have been up and down in the runup to these Olympics.