According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Kevin Durant is expected to start Saturday’s gold medal game against France.
Durant, dealing with a strained calf during the United States’ pre-Olympic training camp, has come off the bench in the team’s five games in Paris. That will reportedly change on Saturday, with Charania reporting that KD’s expected to replace Jrue Holiday in the starting lineup. While Holiday’s defense has been significant, Durant gives the starting lineup an additional scoring punch, and he isn’t a slouch defensively. France changed its starting lineup ahead of the quarterfinal round, with Isaia Cordinier and Guershon Yabusele replacing Evan Fournier and Rudy Gobert, and the moves have paid off for the hosts.