MIAMI (AP) — Erik Spoelstra appears interested in coaching Kevin Durant if he ultimately decides to chase more Olympic gold.
Miami Heat coach Spoelstra, who will lead the U.S. men’s basketball team at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, said Saturday he was aware of Durant’s recent comments about the potential of competing for a fifth gold medal.
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The concept is obviously interesting.
“Just for him to say that is unbelievable,” Spoelstra said before the Heat hosted Durant and the Houston Rockets. “You know, that’s the culture of American basketball. You just want the best American players to put their hands up and say, ‘I want to do this.'”
After the 2024 Olympics, Durant said he wouldn’t rule out another chance to compete in the Games. Durant told ESPN in a recent interview that he “would love” to compete in the Los Angeles Olympics, adding that he hopes his performance between now and then will convince USA Basketball general manager Grant Hill, national team director Sean Ford, Spoelstra and others involved in the selection process that he deserves a spot.
“I want to be on the court and make plays…I still want to prove that I can help the team win,” Durant said in that interview.
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Durant’s place in American basketball legend was established long ago.
He is the only four-time gold medalist in Olympic men’s basketball history, having previously won gold at the 2012 London Olympics, the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, the Tokyo Olympics, which were postponed one year to 2021, and the 2024 Paris Olympics. In Paris, he passed Lisa Leslie to become the U.S.’s career leader in points in an Olympic game.
“You can feel his passion for representing his country and putting Team USA on his jersey,” Spoelstra said. “He’s been unbelievable in these games.”
Spoelstra is an assistant coach on the 2024 Olympic team, so he has worked with Durant before. He also said the 37-year-old Durant’s game is timeless — as evidenced by the fact that the sixth-leading scorer in NBA history, who will pass Michael Jordan as the fifth-leading scorer in the coming weeks, is still putting up numbers that are almost unheard of for someone that age.
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“He’s definitely a tactician in terms of his work ethic and the way he trains,” Spoelstra said. “It’s a great lesson for all the young players coming into the league. It’s one thing to shoot the ball, it’s another thing to really develop the player and I think that’s the takeaway for all of us over the summer, those six weeks, watching him work.
“After practice, before practice, in the days between practices, he’s going to have the intention to try – even at this age – to get better and improve. What a great mentality to have.”
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