Kevin Durant is back and the United States looks more dangerous than ever.
The U.S. basketball team’s all-time leading scorer missed all five exhibition games with a calf injury but made a resounding return in a dominant 110-84 win over Serbia to open the season. Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Durant made his first eight shot attempts, showing no signs of rust and scoring 21 points in the first half to give the United States a comfortable lead. LeBron James then took over, scoring 21 points, nine assists and seven rebounds in a well-rounded effort to set the tone for Team USA.
Serbian star Nikola Jokic did everything he could to keep his country in contention, but the United States had too much offensive power. Jokic finished with 20 points, eight assists and five rebounds, recording an impressive +/- despite playing 31 minutes in a game his team lost by 26 points.
If you missed any of the action from the USA men’s basketball Olympics opener against Serbia, The Sporting News has you covered with updates, highlights and more below.
MORE: Watch the 2024 Olympics Live with FuboTV (Free Trial)
Final score of the USA vs Serbia basketball match
| Group C | Q1 | T2 | T3 | T4 | F |
| Serbia | 20 | 29 | 16 | 19 | 84 |
| UNITED STATES | 25 | 33 | 26 | 26 | 110 |
USA vs Serbia: Live updates and highlights from the 2024 Olympics
(All times are Eastern Time)
Final: USA 110, Serbia 84
1:08 p.m.: A three-pointer by Stephen Curry just before the final buzzer put an exclamation point on the United States’ victory. The American team won 110-84 against Serbia on the strength of Kevin Durant’s 23 points and LeBron James’ near triple-double of 21 points, nine assists and seven rebounds.
Nikola Jokic finished with 20 points, eight assists and five rebounds, but Serbia lacked the strength or physicality on defense to stop the United States. Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 14 points.
First part, game won
???????? #USABMNT X #Paris2024 #Basketball pic.twitter.com/K2gru3J1X9
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) July 28, 2024
1:04 p.m.: Devin Booker puts Serbia on the floor. He scores another three-pointer, his fourth of the game. to extend Team USA’s lead to 22, 101-79, with a minute and a half left.
1:01 p.m.: Bogdan Bogdanovic makes a three-pointer, then LeBron James misses his three-pointer, grabs his own rebound and shoots to Devin Booker for a three-pointer. There’s not enough time left for Serbia to continue trading baskets.
12:58 p.m.: Serbia failed to stop the play needed to cut the U.S. lead. Nikola Jokic scored two baskets and assisted on a three-pointer by Vasilije Micic early in the fourth quarter, but the U.S. answered each time.
Team USA leads Serbia 91-76 with 4:19 remaining in the game.
End of third quarter: USA 84, Serbia 65
12:49 p.m.: Anthony Edwards made a smooth up-and-under to beat the buzzer! Team USA took a 19-point lead into the fourth quarter on the strength of Kevin Durant’s 23 points and LeBron James’ 18 points.
Nikola Jokic did everything he could to keep Serbia in this game, totaling 16 points (6-8 FG), five assists and three rebounds.
12:45 p.m.: The United States is starting to pull away. The second unit of Derrick White, Anthony Edwards, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis and Bam Adebayo really made life difficult for the Serbian attack, limiting them to just five points in the final four minutes of the period.
12:35 p.m.: Now it’s LeBron James’ turn to take over. James does a little bit of everything for the United States, scoring 18 points on 8-of-9 shooting, with seven assists and four rebounds.
James just stripped Bogdan Bogdanovic and made his way down the court, finishing at the rim through contact.
Get out of his way‼️
LeBron James FEELS it. #ParisOlympicGames
???? NBC and Peacock pic.twitter.com/SrLSfseX7z
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 28, 2024
The American team leads Serbia 73-59 with four minutes left in the quarter.
12:29 p.m.: Play was halted early in the second half as the referees went to the monitor to review a physical play that resulted in a few bodies on the court on both sides. Joel Embiid was assessed an “unsportsmanlike” foul for his hit on Aleksa Avramovic.
Half-time: USA 58, Serbia 49
12:17 p.m.: Check out Kevin Durant’s eight shots in the first half below, without a single miss.
NO missed shots for Kevin Durant in the first half.
Easy money. ???? #ParisOlympicGames
???? NBC and Peacock pic.twitter.com/nOa595PqAV
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 28, 2024
12:00 p.m.: KEVIN DURANT. Serbia went on an 8-0 run to get back into the game, but Durant continued to set the court on fire. He hit a mid-range shot, another 3-pointer And a shot back at the buzzer to bring the United States’ lead back to nine points, 58-49 at halftime.
KD scored 21 points while shooting 8-of-8 from the field and 5-of-5 from three-point range.
Team USA leads by nine points at halftime against Serbia.
KD: 21 PTS, 8-8 MGF, 5-5 15h pic.twitter.com/y4fgCUoAdp
— Sporting News (@sportingnews) July 28, 2024
11:55: Ognjen Dobric with a four-point play! The Serbian goalkeeper cut Team USA’s lead to six, 46-40, with 2:46 remaining in the half.
11:48: Kevin Durant simply cannot be missed. He was impressive with 14 points on 5 perfect shots and four three-pointers.
The United States leads Serbia 38-25 halfway through the second quarter.
11:42: Kevin Durant is in great shape. After missing all five exhibition games, Durant has made his first four shots in his return. He has already scored 11 points in less than five minutes.
Team USA leads Serbia 32-25 with 7:24 left in the half.
End of first quarter: USA 25, Serbia 20
11:38: The United States overcame a sluggish start to finish the first quarter on an 11-0 run. Kevin Durant and Devin Booker each scored six points to give the team the lead, while LeBron James had five points and two assists.
Nikola Jokic scored just three points and committed three turnovers in the first quarter.
11:38: Anthony Davis heads to the bench after picking up his second foul with less than a minute left in the frame.
11:37: Kevin Durant, him again! He scores another triple on his second shot attempt and allows the American team to achieve a new 9-0.
11:31: Kevin Durant entered with 2:33 left in the quarter and immediately hit a three-pointer. Welcome back, KD.
11:29: The United States responded strongly. Devin Booker hit two triples to kick off a 9-0 run for Team USA, but Serbia weathered the storm.
Serbia still leads 20-14 with three minutes left in the first quarter.
11:23: Serbia beat USA early. Aleksa Avramovic scored six quick points to give Serbia a 10-2 lead. United States head coach Steve Kerr took a timeout and replaced a struggling Joel Embiid with Anthony Davis to try to change the energy.
11:20 a.m.: Jrue Holiday’s defense forces a turnover and it turns into a fast break dunk from LeBron James the other way.
The first points of the American team #ParisOlympicGames Courtesy of LeBron James! ????
???? NBC and Peacock pic.twitter.com/OWMHHc3vwD
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 28, 2024
11:16: Aleksa Avramovic gets the first basket and off we go!
Serbia takes a 2-0 lead at the start of the match.
Pre-match
11:15 a.m.: Serbia will start Bogdan Bogdanovic, Ognjen Dobric, Aleksa Avramovic, Filip Petrusev and Nikola Jokic.
11:08: Kevin Durant will be the backup for his first game back. Head coach Steve Kerr will start Stephen Curry, Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday, LeBron James and Joel Embiid, the starting group he has used most in exhibition games.
???????? #USABMNT Five starting players for Olympic opening match
???? @nbc @peacock #Paris2024 #Basketball pic.twitter.com/NE8VAv8UbH
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) July 28, 2024
10:15 a.m.: An hour before kickoff, USA Basketball announced that Kevin Durant (calf) is expected to make his debut for the 2024 USA team against Serbia.
Kevin Durant is available for today’s ???????? #USABMNT Olympic match against Serbia (11:15 a.m. ET, NBC)! pic.twitter.com/92e6gjvw3e
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) July 28, 2024
How to watch USA vs Serbia at the 2024 Paris Olympics
- Date: Sunday July 28
- Time: 11:15 AM ET
- TV channel: NBC
- Direct: Peacock, NBCOlympics.com, Fubo
Fans can watch Team USA take on Serbia on NBC on Sunday, July 28 at 11:15 a.m. ET. For those streaming the game, Peacock and NBCOlympics.com will be showing the game. Fubo is also available and has a free trial.
2024 Men’s Olympic Basketball Schedule
Saturday July 27
| Round | Correspond | Time (ET) |
| group A | Australia vs Spain | 5 am |
| Group B | Germany vs Japan | 7:30 a.m. |
| Group B | France vs Brazil | 11:15 a.m. |
| group A | Greece vs Canada | 3:00 p.m. |
Sunday July 28
| Round | Correspond | Time (ET) |
| Group C | South Sudan vs Puerto Rico | 5 am |
| Group C | Serbia vs USA | 11:15 a.m. |
Tuesday July 30
| Round | Correspond | Time (ET) |
| group A | Spain vs Greece | 5 am |
| group A | Canada vs Australia | 7:30 a.m. |
| Group B | Japan vs France | 11:15 a.m. |
| Group B | Brazil vs Germany | 3:00 p.m. |
Wednesday July 31
| Round | Correspond | Time (ET) |
| Group C | Puerto Rico vs Serbia | 11:15 a.m. |
| Group C | United States vs. South Sudan | 3:00 p.m. |
Friday August 2nd
| Round | Correspond | Time (ET) |
| Group B | Japan vs Brazil | 5 am |
| group A | Australia vs Greece | 7:30 a.m. |
| group A | Canada vs Spain | 11:15 a.m. |
| Group B | France vs Germany | 3:00 p.m. |
Saturday August 3rd
| Round | Correspond | Time (ET) |
| Group C | Puerto Rico vs United States | 11:15 a.m. |
| Group C | Serbia vs South Sudan | 3:00 p.m. |
Tuesday August 6th
| Round | Correspond | Time (ET) |
| Quarterfinal | To be determined vs. To be determined | 5 am |
| Quarterfinal | To be determined vs. To be determined | 8:30 a.m. |
| Quarterfinal | To be determined vs. To be determined | Noon |
| Quarterfinal | To be determined vs. To be determined | 3:30 p.m. |
Thursday August 8th
| Round | Correspond | Time (ET) |
| Semi final | To be determined vs. To be determined | 11:30 in the morning |
| Semi final | To be determined vs. To be determined | 3:00 p.m. |
Saturday August 10
| Round | Correspond | Time (ET) |
| Bronze Medal Match | To be determined vs. To be determined | 5 am |
| Gold Medal Match | To be determined vs. To be determined | 3:30 p.m. |
