Team USA men’s basketball made a bold statement Saturday, wiping out a competitive Czech Republic team, 119-=84, to finish 2-1 in Olympic pool play and advance to the medal round in Japan.
In the process, they also disposed of the second guessing and criticism that has hovered over this team like a dark cloud since the start of training camp in Vegas.
The Americans dominated final three quarters of play against a European team that knocked Canada out of the Olympics in a qualifying tournament.
And Kevin Durant, the 6-10 forward who is their biggest star, came out of his shell, scoring 23 points on 8 of 11 shooting, grabbing 8 rebounds, contributing six assists and playing r playing the way he did in the biggest games during Team USA’s gold medal run at the 2016 games in Rio.
Durant made history when he became the USA’s all time leading scorer in Olympic competition with 354 points in three Olympic competitions, surpassing Carmelo Anthony who scored 336.
“Just thinking about all the players who played in this program, it’s pretty cool to be amongst names like that,” Durant said. “Carmelo is a guy I played on two Olympic teams with. I’ve seen his approach to these games and I tried to steal some of his techniques.
“I don’t know man, it’s still pretty weird to me to do stuff like that. I play a team sport and I try my hardest to make it about the group. But it’s pretty special to do something like that.”
The Brooklyn Nets star was averaging just 10 points and had hit just 8 fof 20 shots, including 3 for 10 from beyond the arc in the first two games, fouling out in a loss to France before this breakout performance. He shot 4 of 7 from three against a Czech team that had no idea how to slow him down during the three quarters he played.
Durant was dominant in the decisive third quarter, scoring 10 points with four assists as the U.S. outscored the Czechs, 35-17, to create the momentum for a blowout. “Looked easy didn’t it? Looked easy,” Milwaukee Bucks guard Jrue Holiday said of Durant. “It’s fun the watch.”
Durant defended the taller Czech bigs, blocked a three point attempt and battled for rebounds to ignite the American’s lethal fast break. He even played minutes as a point forward, It was a complete masterpiece, fueled by a sense of urgency. “I’ve had a lot asked of me every team I’ve been on since I was eight-years old,” he said. “It’s no different here. But I feel I have to be available to do every single thing on the court. I’ve worked to be at that point. And it’s fun.”
Team USA will need Durant to be at the top of his game when they play tougher teams like Australia Spain, France, Italy and Slovenia in the medal round which starts Tuesday.
The Czech Republic, which has a history of starting fast, was competitive for a half, taking a 21-12 lead at one point in the first quarter before the USA gave them a dose of reality.
“I think we are just locked in,” guard Jrue Holiday of the NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks, American’s best perimeter defender, said.
Forward Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics found his offensive touch as well, scoring 27 points after shooting just 40 percent in the first two games. “I told him to play like he does when he plays at Spurs,” San Antonio and US national team coach Greg Popovich said. “It feels like he scores 90 against us every time he plays against us.”
Zach Lavine had 13 and Holiday added 11 with three steals in the confidence building victory. The Americans looked their best when Popovich inserted 6-8 forward Draymond Green, an NBA all-defensive caliber player, in the game with Holiday and Durant and they forced the Czechs to initiate their half court offense two feet outside the international three point arc.
