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Team USA will be without Kevin Durant tonight when they face off against Canada in an Olympic friendly. On Tuesday night, Steve Kerr announced that Durant will be sidelined for Wednesday's game after sustaining a calf strain earlier in the summer.
A report from NBA insider Shams Charania and Joe Vardon indicated that the calf injury sustained by Durant isn't a serious one.
Because of that, his absence from Wednesday's game is being viewed as precautionary. Despite that, however, Kerr also notably indicated that Durant hasn't participated in full practices with Team USA yet, and has been working on his own with members of the training staff.
On Tuesday night, Kerr spoke with media members, fielding questions about a wide range of topics. Although there's just over two weeks left to go until Team USA plays their first game of the Olympic group phase, Kerr didn't sound too worried when asked about Durant's status:
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"He's already doing plenty of things on the side. So not with the team yet, but strengthening, treatment. He said he's feeling pretty good. And [we'll] just keep taking it day by day and it won't be long before he's out on the court with us, and we'll just give you updates as we get them."
Kevin Durant's injury marks latest setback for Team USA ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics
Kevin Durant's calf strain marks the latest setback for Team USA as they look to win Olympic gold. Durant has been a dominant force for Team USA in the past, winning three Olympic gold medals while only losing one single game across three Olympic appearances.
On the heels of Steve Kerr's comments about Durant's status on Tuesday, the team learned that Kawhi Leonard wouldn't be joining them in Paris. Despite practicing with the team, and taking part in the Team USA training camp, he, Team USA, and the LA Clippers, decided it would be best if he didn't play.
A statement regarding the situation was released on Wednesday morning on X, formerly known as Twitter:
“Kawhi has been ramping up for the Olympics over the past several weeks and had a few strong practices in Las Vegas. He telt ready to compete. However, he respects that USA Basketball and the Clippers determined it's in his best interest to spend the remainder of the summer preparing for the upcoming season rather than participating in the Olympic Games in Paris.”
Because of this, Team USA is now looking for a replacement, with Derrick White being an early frontrunner to replace Leonard, according to Shams Charania. At the same time, there has also been talk of reigning Finals MVP Jaylen Brown stepping in on short notice.
While the USA Basketball program is figuring out who will replace Leonard, they could wind up needing to find a replacement for Kevin Durant. With Olympic basketball set to start on Jul. 27, KD may not have the necessary time to let his calf strain heal up.
As we've seen in the past, calf strains can be particularly tricky, with devastating consequences when a player rushes to return.
