Kevin Durant now holds the record for the most points scored by a U.S. player in Olympic basketball history.
Durant set this record during the Americans’ quarterfinal game against Brazil on Tuesday, surpassing Lisa Leslie’s previous record. His basket with 3:06 remaining in the third quarter pushed his career total to 489 points across four Olympic Games. Leslie had scored 488 points in her four appearances and won four gold medals.
Durant ended the game with 11 points, bringing his new record to 494 and continuing to climb.
“Records are meant to be broken,” Durant said. “Someone will come along and do the same. My focus is on winning this gold.”
Durant aims to be the first men’s Olympic player with four gold medals, having already won in London 2012, Rio de Janeiro 2016, and Tokyo 2020.
He attributed his longevity to his training, maintaining his physical condition, and staying in the gym.
Durant is also the No. 8 scorer in NBA history with 28,924 points, and No. 2 on the active list behind LeBron James, who has 40,474 points.
Lisa Leslie congratulated Durant on his achievement, saying on X (formerly Twitter), “Well let me start to congratulate @KDTrey5 as he gets ready to break one of my Olympic records! The Slim Reaper!! One of my all-time favorites!”
Durant’s record is likely to stand for a while, as he is one of only five U.S. players with at least 300 Olympic points, along with Leslie, Diana Taurasi (416 points entering the women’s quarterfinals), Carmelo Anthony (336 points), and LeBron James (316 points as of Tuesday).
