Current:Home > MarketsUSA’s Kevin Durant ‘looked good’ at practice, but status unclear for Paris Olympics opener-InfoLens
USA’s Kevin Durant ‘looked good’ at practice, but status unclear for Paris Olympics opener
View Date:2024-12-23 15:13:36
VILLENEUVE-D'ASCQ, France — Kevin Durant, the U.S. men’s basketball basketball star who has not played in five pre-Olympics exhibition games with a sore calf, went through a non-contact practice at Pierre Mauroy Stadium on Wednesday, but his status remains unclear for the team’s Group C opener Sunday against Serbia.
"We will do some live stuff (Thursday), so the plan is for him to get in the scrimmage and see how he handles that," U.S. coach Steve Kerr said following practice at the massive soccer stadium turned basketball arena nearly 140 miles north of Paris. "But yeah, he looked good (Wednesday), and he did everything and got a lot of shots up and told me he's feeling pretty good."
The U.S. was 5-0 in the exhibition games but had close wins against South Sudan (101-100) and Germany (92-88), and Durant, USA Basketball’s all-time leading men’s Olympic scorer, would give the U.S. a significant boost. He is also trying to become the first American male to win four gold medals in men’s basketball.
Get Olympics updates in your texts! Join USA TODAY Sports' WhatsApp Channel
The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.
Meet Team USA: See which athletes made the U.S. Olympic team and where they are from
The U.S. already had to replace Kawhi Leonard (recovering from a knee injury) with Derrick White, but Kerr said there is not concern now that Durant won’t be able to play in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Kerr said USA Basketball men’s team managing director Grant Hill is in communication with team trainers, Durant’s management and the Phoenix Suns. Hill said after the first U.S. exhibition game against Canada on July 10 that he expected Durant to return for one of the next four exhibition games. That didn't happen.
"This is not going to be like us going out and saying, 'Hey, let's just throw him out there,'" Kerr said. "This will be a big collaboration."
Durant is expected to talk with reporters Thursday in Paris.
veryGood! (1389)
Related
- NFL MVP rankings: Does Steelers QB Russell Wilson deserve any consideration?
- March Madness: Caitlin Clark, Iowa will meet South Carolina for national title Sunday
- Sen. Jacky Rosen places $14 million ad reservation in key Nevada Senate race
- An appeals court blocks a debt relief plan for students who say they were misled by colleges
- Rōki Sasaki is coming to MLB: Dodgers the favorite to sign Japanese ace for cheap?
- Gray wolves hadn’t been seen in south Michigan since the 1900s. This winter, a local hunter shot one
- Afraid of flying? British Airways wants to help.
- Drake Bell Shares Why He Pleaded Guilty in Child Endangerment Case
- Ryan Reynolds Clarifies Taylor Swift’s Role as Godmother to His Kids With Blake Lively
- 'No that wasn't the sound system': Yankees react to earthquake shaking ground on Opening Day
Ranking
- New Jersey will issue a drought warning after driest October ever and as wildfires rage
- Boeing’s CEO got compensation worth nearly $33 million last year but lost a $3 million bonus
- Man convicted of hate crimes for attacking Muslim man in New York City
- Only Julia Fox Could Make Hair Extension Shoes Look Fabulous
- Bull doge! Dogecoin soars as Trump announces a government efficiency group nicknamed DOGE
- NBA fines 76ers $100,000 for violating injury reporting rules
- Pete Townshend on the return of Tommy to Broadway
- Who plays Prince Andrew, Emily Maitlis in 'Scoop'? See cast and their real-life counterparts
Recommendation
-
John Krasinski Details Moment He Knew Wife Emily Blunt Was “the One”
-
Apple's App Store, Apple TV, other online services go down Wednesday
-
Inside Exes Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher’s Private World
-
World Central Kitchen boss José Andrés accuses Israel of direct attack on Gaza aid convoy
-
Michael Grimm, former House member convicted of tax fraud, is paralyzed in fall from horse
-
Earthquake rattles NYC and beyond: One of the largest East Coast quakes in the last century
-
Last chance to see the NCAA's unicorn? Caitlin Clark's stats put her in league of her own
-
What to know about the $30 million cash heist in Los Angeles