Kevin Durant has had a lot on his mind on social media after Team USA’s phenomenal 95-91 win over Serbia. Durant called out Nuggets fans in the USA for supporting Serbia in the semi-final matchup for Nikola Jokic, saying players respect Jokic and are in awe of his brilliance, but don’t worship him like his fans.
“To all you Nuggets fans, nobody gives a f**k who y’all lames believe is the best player in the league. Players got major respect for Jok, we don’t worship him like y’all do but most are in awe of his brilliance. Trolling you cornballs for rooting against us is a part of the game. Deal with it.”
Durant’s outburst had started hours earlier, as he was tweeting at 5 A.M. in Paris by responding to an American Nuggets fan on X who was talking about how proud Serbia should be for what Nikola Jokic almost achieved.
“Where u from??”
Where u from??
— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) August 9, 2024
Durant is understandably upset to see his own countrymen not root for Team USA at the Olympics. However, this is a larger indicator of what the nature of player discourse has brought fans to. Supporting Jokic to lead the Nuggets to success isn’t enough anymore because everything is evaluated through the lens of ‘legacy.’
Jokic beating this version of Team USA might be one of the biggest single-game legacy moments for a superstar like him, who has already dominated the NBA over the last five years. The narratives to promote Jokic as possibly one of the greatest centers ever would have been rich, which the loss takes away.
Rooting for the Serbian national team for Jokic against a team of your country’s best is weird, and it’s the kind of behavior that you frankly would not see in any other sport.
The 2024 Team USA Is Proving They’re Among The Greatest Teams Ever
What the main takeaway from this game should be is how Team USA has repeatedly answered the bell as one of the greatest teams ever assembled.
They’ve had many shaky moments, but no matter the situation, they’ve found a way to storm back into the game and leave with the win. We saw it against South Sudan in an exhibition and now we’ve seen it on a much bigger stage against a much better opponent.
The core trio of starters that Steve Kerr had laid out to everyone before the start of the Olympics were the three players who showed up tonight.
Stephen Curry scored the second-most points in a single game in Team USA history with 36 points, while Joel Embiid put up 19 points on 8-11 shooting. LeBron James gave the pair the credit for the win, but he made history himself as the first player to record multiple triple-doubles at the Olympics.
This doesn’t even mention the contributions of Devin Booker, Durant, Anthony Edwards, Jrue Holiday, Anthony Davis, and more in this win. This is one of the most complete basketball teams we’ve ever seen. Calling them the greatest might be a step too far, especially until they seal the Gold, but they’re definitely amongst the greatest collection of basketball talent we have ever seen.
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