Kevin Durant made his much-anticipated return to Team USA for Sunday's Olympic opener against Serbia at the Paris Games, quickly demonstrating what the team had been missing in his absence.
Durant entered the game in the first quarter and made an immediate impact, sinking his first shot attempt—a 3-pointer—and proceeded to deliver a flawless first half, shooting 8-for-8 from the field, including 5-for-5 from beyond the arc, to lead all scorers with 21 points at halftime.
USA Basketball confirmed Durant's availability about an hour before tip-off. Although he was not part of the starting lineup, as Coach Steve Kerr had suggested the day before, Durant’s presence off the bench proved pivotal.
Joel Embiid started for the U.S. team despite missing practice on Saturday due to an illness.
Kevin Durant missed all five pre-Olympic exhibition games because of a calf strain. He initially sustained the injury a few days before the team gathered in Las Vegas for training camp in early July but returned to full practice last week.
Durant is aiming to become the first four-time Olympic gold medalist in men's basketball. The all-time leading scorer for the U.S. men's Olympic team, he was part of the squads that won gold at the London Games in 2012, the Rio de Janeiro Games in 2016, and the Tokyo Games in 2021.
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