Will Injured Kevin Durant Be Replaced on Team USA? Here's What Steve Kerr Had to Say

Team USA head coach Steve Kerr gave a firm response to reporters when asked if there were thoughts of replacing Kevin Durant on Team USA.

By Natasha Bose

Published on Jul 23, 2024 | 04:31 PM IST | 78.3K

Steve Kerr Weighs In On Whether Team USA Will Replace Kevin Durant

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Coach Steve Kerr on replacing Kevin Durant in Team USA
Durant is ‘day to day’ with his calf strain, but he's a key part of Team USA

Team USA faced another challenging game, barely defeating the German National team with a close 92-88 score. After the win, head coach Steve Kerr and Jrue Holiday spoke at a post-game press conference.

Aside from questions about the game, they were asked about the possibility of replacing Kevin Durant in Team USA’s lineup, which got a firm response.

Coach Steve Kerr on replacing Kevin Durant in Team USA

Kevin Durant, despite being on the official roster, hasn't played any games for the US Olympic team yet. Should the team think about replacing the two-time NBA champion? Here’s what Steve and Jrue had to say.

Kevin Durant's calf injury won't stop him from going to Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics. Steve Kerr told reporters there's "no thought" of replacing Durant on the roster.

“There’s no thought of replacing Kevin," said Kerr. Jrue clearly agreed with the coach, adding, "That’s Kevin Durant, my boy. What are we talking about? That’s KD. He needs to be out there.”

Steve Kerr quickly shut down any talks of replacing Kevin Durant from the Team USA lineup. Holiday was already shaking his head when a reporter even thought of replacing the 14-time All-Star. The 34-year-old has faced KD many times in the league.

Durant is ‘day to day’ with his calf strain, but he's a key part of Team USA

The Phoenix Suns superstar missed all five of the U.S. exhibition games before the Olympics due to the calf issue, including the team's 92-88 win over Germany on Monday. Despite this, the U.S. finished with a perfect 5-0 record.

The 35-year-old got injured before training camp started on July 6 and hasn't been able to play. According to Joe Vardon of The Athletic, Durant is considered "day to day" with the calf strain.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst gave more details about Durant's status:

"I've seen progress every day," Durant said on Friday, per Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press. "It's one of those things. Just got to monitor it every day. I'll see how I feel after I do certain exercises. My thing is to keep running and see what happens."

While Team USA has remained unbeaten without the 14-time All-Star, they've had several close calls and could use his scoring. Before Monday's narrow victory, Kerr's team came back from a double-digit deficit to win by one point over South Sudan on Saturday.

Durant, besides his two NBA championships, is one of the most accomplished international players on the U.S. roster. He's the all-time scoring leader in the Olympics for the U.S. men's team and aims to become the first men's basketball player to win four gold medals in the 2024 Games.