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‘Best Player In the Tournament’: NBA Analyst Believes Kevin Durant can Achieve Greatness at Tokyo Olympics 2020

Published 07/25/2021, 7:00 AM EDT

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When Kevin Durant played for Team USA for the first time even before he entered the league in 2007, there was no doubt that he will be part of this roster again. In fact, he has been part of it every time since then. But who knew, the man who held his own against some of the best in the league as a rookie, like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony. And now that he is the one leading the USA men’s basketball team, former college basketball coach, Fran Fraschilla is certain KD is their key to clinch their fourth gold in the Tokyo Olympics.

Kevin Durant will become the All-time leading scorer?

Team USA’s men’s basketball team is hoping to have another successful run and bringing home a gold medal. And if there is anything that fans are sure of that they have the perfect leader for it, even Fran Fraschilla couldn’t agree more.

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In an interview, he explained that KD agreeing to take part in the Olympics only motivated the rest of the players to join in. But he also couldn’t stop raving about the superstar and stated, “Kevin is a baller. He’s a hooper. He is going to end up, barring injuries, knock on wood, he will be the all-time leading scorer for USA men’s Olympic basketball.”

“It’s just great to see that he wanted to play and be the top dog, and the leader of this team.” Like most of us, Fran’s faith comes from years of statistics and KD’s commitment to this team since the beginning. But it won’t be this easy, will it?

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KD will be the key player for the team

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But Fran did not downplay how hard KD and the rest of the team will have to work to get that medal. “Quite Frankly, he’s going to have to play really well for us to win the gold. It’s not going to be a cakewalk. But when you have Kevin out there, it’s like going into a dark alley with the toughest guy in the neighborhood. He’s the best player in the tournament obviously.”

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Like Fran, fans must have breathed a sigh of relief when Durant agreed to lead the team despite an intense NBA season. However, the Brooklyn Nets superstar has a lot of pressure to continue the team’s legacy and they haven’t had the best start after losing to Nigeria and Australia in the preparation games. Do you think Durant can pull off another legendary victory for Team USA this year?

Kevin Durant Can Overtake Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James at the Tokyo Olympics 2020

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Written by:

Yashima Bhatia

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Yashima Bhatia is an NBA writer for EssentiallySports who specialises in providing nuanced predictions and updates for matches. She has a Bachelor's degree in journalism and mass communication. Yashima's love for playing the game came up at a young age, when the excitement of the games coupled with the intensity of the Playoffs had her hooked.
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