Kevin Durant, LeBron James & Co. begin Team USA’s quest for a FIFTH straight Olympic gold medal with easy win

Kevin Durant made a stunning return from injury and Lebron James pulled the strings for the USA men’s basketball team as they comfortably dispatched Serbia 110-84 in their opening game of the Olympics.  Durant had missed all of the Americans’ pre-Paris tuneup games with a calf injury and was in a race against time to be healthy enough for Sunday.

But the Suns star was deemed available shortly before the game and had an absolutely pristine first half after entering from the bench, as he scored 21 points on 8-of-8 shooting.  He would only score two more in the second half but it was no matter as the USA continued to build on a nine-point halftime lead, with James contributing an impressive 21 points, nine assists and eight rebounds by the end.  ‘I’m so grateful to have him back,’ Durant said afterwards of James, who skipped the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo.

                          Kevin Durant had an absolutely scorching first half, as he scored 21 points off the bench

                             LeBron James also had a strong game and finished the game with a near triple-double

‘We’ve missed him the last two Olympics. He puts fear in the other team. That goes a long way, the psyche of the game. He’s running downhill, making the right plays on the offensive and defensive end.   James was similarly complimentary of Durant, calling him an ‘out-of-this-world-talent.’

Three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic had 20 points, eight assists and five rebounds for Serbia but his team ultimately found themselves outmatched by a star-studded USA squad.  Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic added 14 for Serbia in the loss while Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday, Stephen Curry and Anthony Edwards all finished in double figures as well.

Celtics star and reigning NBA champion Jayson Tatum surprisingly didn’t play at all for the USA.  The USA started the game slowly, with Serbia building a quick 10-2 lead and forcing American coach Steve Kerr to call a timeout.   However, the introduction of big man Anthony Davis for Joel Embiid coincided with a 12-2 extended run and USA further seized control of the game when Durant entered late in the first.

Team USA will face South Sudan on Wednesday, as the country goes for its fifth straight Olympic medal in men’s basketball.  Durant, meanwhile, is bidding to become the first four-time Olympic men’s basketball gold medalist.  The all-time US men’s leader in Olympic scoring was on the teams that won titles at the London Games in 2012, the Rio de Janeiro Games in 2016 and the Tokyo Games held three years ago.  He missed all five of the team’s pre-Olympic exhibitions with a calf strain after getting hurt a few days before the team convened in Las Vegas for training camp in early July.