Thunder’s Kevin Durant eager for Olympic gold
The hurt will never completely leave Kevin Durant’s soul until he wins a championship.
Fortunately, the Oklahoma City Thunder forward has a new goal to pursue, freeing himself mentally and emotionally from coming up short in last month’s NBA Finals to LeBron James and the Miami Heat: Olympic gold.
For Durant, who is just 23, it would be the biggest reward of his basketball life.
“I just want to win something. I’m tired of coming in second,” said Durant, who apparently forgot that he led the United States to its guaranteed spot in the upcoming London Games by winning gold at the 2010 FIBA World Championships in Turkey. “I’m not even thinking about what happened in the Finals. My focus is on this team and winning the gold medal in London.”
In 2008, when the U.S. team was being finalized for its run to the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics, Durant was the odd man out. While Olympic coach Mike Krzyzewski didn’t get to coach Durant that year, he did coach him in Turkey during the 2010 Worlds, and he has big plans for Durant later this month in London.
“He wasn’t quite ready yet,” Krzyzewski said of the decision to bypass Durant in 2008. “That team was a mixture of young guys and veterans, and we thought the guys who would be coming off the bench should be veterans.
“But we obviously knew he’d be special. He has gotten stronger physically, and he used that experience in 2010 to springboard to where he is today.”
Krzyzewski said he plans to use Durant’s versatility on the court.
“We’ll use him every way,” he said. “He has so many dimensions to his game that we can take advantage of. But we have to be careful not to use him in 20 different lineups, while at the same time not pigeonholing him.”
Durant said the experience of 2010 was helpful in his development.
“I learned a lot about the international game,” he said. “It’s very physical basketball, and I know what to expect.
“Being in the system, knowing what Coach K wants, I’m a lot more comfortable. I just want to be a team player here. It’s all about one team. That’s what makes it fun.”
Durant’s comfort level has been aided by the fact that Thunder teammates Russell Westbrook and James Harden are with him on the U.S. squad.
“I’m glad James is on the team,” Durant said. “He’s got a Euro-style game and he had a great season. Russell, he plays hard. In Oklahoma City, he plays 42 minutes a night. On this team, he only has to go hard for three or four minutes at a time. He’s going to give us a lot of energy and extend a lot of possessions.
“The fact we know each other so well will help us on this team. We’re looking forward to playing together (in London).”
Durant is not putting much emphasis on coming up short in his first trip to the NBA Finals. He refuses to let it distract him or haunt him as he focuses on the upcoming Olympics, which begins July 27.
“I’m not going to let it define me or my career,” he said. “I hope to win a championship one day. But if I don’t, I won’t feel like my career wasn’t a success. I don’t think like that.”
Durant said being part of a gold medal-winning team would suit him fine for now.
“A lot of people don’t think this team is as good (as 2008),” he said. “I know my teammate, Serge Ibaka (who will play for Spain), has been talking a lot of trash. But this is a very talented group we have here, very unselfish and very dedicated. It’s a group of guys that plays very hard and doesn’t worry about who’s taking the shots.
“We’ve got guys who know what it takes, who’ve won at the highest level. For this team, gold is the only option. We’re not going to settle for the silver medal.”
■ NOTES – According to event promoter Las Vegas Events, Thursday’s 6 p.m. exhibition game at the Thomas & Mack Center against the Dominican Republic national team sold out after the remaining upper balcony seats were purchased Monday. … Guard Chris Paul practiced with his sprained right thumb taped up. However he did not participate in the daily scrimmage against the Select squad. Paul hurt his thumb Friday and was held out of practice Saturday and Sunday. … Forward Blake Griffin missed practice, having returned to Los Angeles to finalize his contract with the Clippers.
Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj.
