Kevin Durant Olympic Record: USA veteran surpasses 2x WNBA champion as top scorer
Team USA's Kevin Durant has set a new record in points after their quarterfinal win (122-87) against Brazil on Tuesday at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Although Durant didn't have the most points for the game, he still surpassed the scoring record held by two-time WNBA champion Lisa Leslie.
Leslie wrapped her national team career with Team USA with 488 points. Her last appearance at the Olympics was in 2008 in Beijing. At that time, Durant was a young up-and-comer in the NBA and wasn't selected to be a part of the team for the 2008 Olympics.
However, that didn't matter, as Durant quickly established himself as one of the best scorers in the game. It didn't matter if it was in the NBA or the international stage, KD was always the bright spot. This time, he's on the quest to win his fourth gold medal for Team USA and is also breaking records.
He scored 11 points against Brazil on Tuesday, enough to surpass Leslie's 488 points. Durant now has 489 points in his belt and will look to add more in the semifinal against Serbia on Thursday.
He also surpassed Carmelo Anthony (336) in points, which makes him the new all-time leading scorer for both men's and women's basketball. During the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, he set a record for averaging the most points. Durant played six games and averaged 20.7 points as he earned his third gold medal.
Kevin Durant's teammate spoke highly of him after setting a new record
There's no denying that Kevin Durant is one of the best players in the game. Even when surrounded by other NBA stars, Durant makes ways to be noticed and dominate in every game.
After Team USA's dominating win against Brazil, his Phoenix Suns teammate, Devin Booker, was asked about his thoughts on Durant setting a new record for all-time points in the Olympics.
"That's Captain America status," Booker told NBC about KD's new record.
"I feel like he has every Olympic record. Now we have to get his fourth gold [medal], that'd be the most as a men's player also. He's a hardworker man. Now that we're teammates, I get to see behind the scenes and all he cares about is hoops, he loves it 24/7, that's all he does."
Durant's Olympic outing has been special since it could be the final time he'll be included in the roster.