Durant, Lillard and USA Men's Basketball Team Roster for 2021 Tokyo Olympics
June 23, 2021
Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard and Devin Booker lead the roster of players reportedly set for the United States men's basketball team at the Tokyo Summer Olympics.
Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium provided the roster Wednesday after Jerami Grant committed as the last player on the 12-man team:
Grant was a replacement for James Harden, who backed out to recover from a hamstring injury that troubled him during the playoffs.
Durant will play in his third Olympic Games, having won gold in 2012 and 2016. Most were surprised when his name was included on the commitment list, given he turns 33 in September and is two years removed from an Achilles rupture. With the NBA set for a shortened offseason, it would have been understandable if Durant prioritized his health and recovery this summer.
However, he'll spend a chunk of his offseason chasing gold for a third time. Carmelo Anthony is the only men's basketball player in history with three gold medals.
Draymond Green was on the 2016 Olympic team with Durant and will be on the same side as his former Golden State Warriors teammate for the first time since KD left for Brooklyn in 2019.
Kevin Love, the most surprising addition to the roster, previously won gold at the 2012 Summer Games. Durant, Green and Love are the only veterans making the trip to Tokyo.
The remainder of the names are first-time Olympians. Lillard dropped out of consideration from the 2016 Games and was among the final cuts from the 2014 World Championship roster.
Booker, Bradley Beal and Jayson Tatum are also set to be first-time Olympians. Beal previously won gold for Team USA during his prep career at the 2009 U16 FIBA Americas and the 2010 U17 World Championship. Tatum likewise has experience on the international stage, with golds in the 2014 U17 World Championship and 2015 U19 World Championship.
Booker is playing in his first international competition of any type. He skipped out on the 2019 World Cup to prep for the 2019-20 NBA season.
This could be an extremely busy summer for Booker, whose Suns are two games away from an NBA Finals berth. Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday are likewise heavy favorites to make a championship-round appearance as they prepare for their Eastern Conference Finals matchup against the Atlanta Hawks.
Gregg Popovich is making his Olympic debut as head coach after taking over the program from Mike Krzyzewski. Popovich's first run leading Team USA did not go as planned, with the U.S. losing in the quarterfinals at the 2019 World Cup. It was the worst performance at a World Cup in United States history.
Team USA has won all but one Olympic gold medal in men's basketball since the debut of the Dream Team in 1992.
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