Team USA Insider predicts Kevin Durant’s return from injury will impact superstar duo's minutes
Team USA went 5-0 without in the exhibition games, with Kevin Durant in the rotation. The record only speaks about how deep the team is as a roster in the Paris Olympics. In the absence of Durant, Steve Kerr has increased the minutes for other players. According to The Athletic's Joe Vardon, Durant's return will impact the minutes of two particular stars on the roster.
On Monday, Vardon wrote Durant's return will impact the minutes of both five-time NBA All-Star Jayson Tatum and four-time NBA All-Star Devin Booker.
“Inserting Durant into the rotation, which is obviously the plan as soon as he is ready, will likely mean a reduction of minutes for both Booker and Tatum, with one of them potentially falling out of Kerr’s rotation,” Vardon wrote.
In the absence of Durant, Kerr has utilized Booker in the starting lineup and started him in the wing position. Tatum fills Booker’s spot in the reserve spot. In the last five games, Kerr has used his rotation and won all of them.
According to NBC Sports, Kerr said only LeBron James, Steph Curry and Joel Embiid are the fixed names in the starting lineup. When KD returns, the team can use him in the frontcourt lineup with James and Embiid.
When will Kevin Durant make his return to Paris Olympics?
After missing all five exhibition games, there is hope in the Team USA camp that KD will make his return any day. The two-time NBA champion injured his left calf before Team USA gathered for the training camp on Jul. 6.
However, the Phoenix Suns star returned to the training camp on Jul. 19. He was seen practicing before the game. However, KD was again ruled out from the team’s game against Germany. Before the game, he was listed day-to-day on the injury list, suggesting the severity of the injury was not that great.
The three-time Olympic gold medalist will travel with the team to Paris. With five days remaining for Team USA's first game on Jul. 27, there is hope that Durant will return to the lineup for the first game.
Durant is the all-time leader for Team USA in points scored at the Olympics. He has played 24 games at the Olympics, scoring 434 points. He also has the highest points per game [19.7] in the Olympics, far ahead of second spot Carmelo Anthony with 10.8 ppg.