Which college did Kevin Durant attend? Exploring his stats, career, and more in NCAA basketball
Kevin Durant was 6 feet tall before ever getting to high school. Before that time, he already knew that he wanted to play in the NBA after growing up watching the Toronto Raptors. By the time Durant graduated high school, he was already 6-foot-9.
After a stellar high school career that saw him named the 2006 McDonald's All-American game MVP, Durant wanted to go right into the NBA draft. However, for the elite scorer, the NBA had already introduced a one-and-done rule preventing him from making the jump straight to the professional ranks.
Ultimately, he landed at Texas, where he played for the Longhorns. During his lone year in college, Durant was named the Big 12 Player of the Year despite going just 1-1 in the NCAA March Madness tournament. During the regular season, however, Durant shone. In 35 games played, he averaged a whopping 25.8 points.
He also averaged 11.1 rebounds, 1.9 steals and 1.9 blocks per game, proving to NBA scouts that he was more than just an elite scorer. As his season with the Longhorns winded down, Kevin Durant rattled off eight straight games with more than 25 points.
He finished as a consensus first-team All-American, and also had his No. 35, a tribute to his late coach, retired by the Texas Longhorns in 2009.
Although his stellar play in college made him a top prospect heading into the 2007 NBA draft, it was Greg Oden who was selected first. After the Trail Blazers selected Oden, the Seattle SuperSonics drafted Durant with the No. 2 pick.
Above, you can see some of Kevin Durant's college highlights.
Kevin Durant's college coach knew he would be great
Although Kevin Durant was notably tall heading into high school, his college coach, Rick Barnes, knew that the lanky teen would be one of the NBA's best players. His belief in Durant came despite many criticizing the forward for not being strong enough.
Barnes went as far as to predict that Durant would be great by the time he was 25. After being drafted as he continued to showcase elite-level scoring with the OKC Thunder in his early 20s, Barnes said even he may have underestimated KD. He was quoted in an interview with The Oklahoman:
“I always keep thinking back about people saying he couldn't bench press 185 pounds. I said, ‘I don't know how many times he can bench press 185, but one thing I do know he will do and can do: He can put that world championship trophy over the top of his head.
“You could see Kevin as a high school player and know he's gifted. But from the very beginning, he understood it was more than that, that it was about winning. People ask me all the time, ‘What does he do for fun?' He plays basketball. He loves it. I don't care where he is, what he does; he wants to be around the game.”
Had Kevin Durant spent more time playing in college, do you think he would have won the NCAA title?
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