Move over, Michael Jordan and the Dream Team.
Kevin Durant is now USA Basketball’s greatest Olympian after winning gold against France on Saturday.
Despite some fans’ mixed feelings about him, this achievement cements a significant part of his legacy.
Durant’s Olympic journey has been nothing short of remarkable. While LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony each have three gold medals, Durant has four. He now holds the title of the most decorated basketball Olympian ever. Not only does he have more golds than any other player, but he also has twice as many as the Soviet Union, which ranks second behind the USA in total medals.
His scoring prowess is unmatched too. Durant leads all Olympic scorers with 518 points, surpassing WNBA legend Lisa Leslie’s 488 points. For context, James scored 358 points and Anthony managed 336 in their Olympic careers.
At the London Olympics in 2012, Durant racked up 156 points. In Rio 2016, he added another 155 points. Tokyo saw him score 124 points despite an injury, and this year he still managed to contribute significantly with 83 points.
Durant’s Stellar Stats:
Even at age 35 in Paris, Durantโs average was impressive: 13.8 points per game along with solid rebounds and assists stats. His career averages stand head and shoulders above othersโ18.5 PPG compared to James’ 11.9 and Anthony’s 10.8.
Fans might think this solidifies his status as a legend beyond debate.
He also leads in several other categories: field goals made (173), attempts (326), three-pointers (88), and free throws (82). Known for performing under pressure both in the NBA and Olympics, Durant scored big when it mattered mostโ30 points against Spain in 2012, another 30 against Serbia in 2016, and almost repeating that feat against France in Tokyo with just one point shy of thirty.
This yearโs performance included a strong showing against France with stats like scoring fifteen points while grabbing four rebounds and dishing out four assists during their gold-medal match-up.
Though debates about his place among NBA greats continue endlessly among fans there’s no denying he’s USA Basketballโs Olympic kingpin now!
Looking ahead to Los Angeles hosting Summer Olympics in ’28 when he’ll be turning thirty-nine; will we see him again? His response was simple yet intriguing: “we’ll see.”
What do you think? Should Durant go for another round?
