Kevin Durant offered what may be the most authoritative endorsement the Philadelphia 76ers have received since assembling their new roster, comparing the scoring depth of a team featuring LeBron James, Jaylen Brown, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey to the Golden State Warriors teams that won back-to-back championships and were widely considered unfair competition.
Durant made the comparison Saturday at a USA Basketball charity event in Southern California, noting that the Warriors were criticized for being too loaded when they featured three scorers capable of averaging 20 points per game. He then pointed out that Philadelphia has put four players who can average 25 points per game on the same team, a statistic he said made them an obvious contender and a compelling watch for anyone who follows the league.
Brown, Embiid and Maxey each averaged at least 25 points per game last season. James has reached that threshold in 20 of his 23 professional seasons, most recently during the 2023-24 campaign with the Lakers.
Durant on the LeBron decision
He said he had no advance notice of James’s decision to sign with Philadelphia over the Warriors, Cavaliers or Heat, a choice that James announced on July 24 after more than three weeks of deliberation. He described the process as characteristic of how James operates, suggesting that despite the volume of public speculation, the actual decision was kept close.
He expressed genuine enthusiasm about the outcome, framing the Philadelphia market and fanbase as ideal landing spots and saying the interest that followed James’s decision would only benefit the league as a whole. The signing was announced on a two-year, $8 million deal at the veteran’s minimum.
The 76ers acquired Jaylen Brown from the Boston Celtics in a trade before James’s arrival, and oddsmakers have responded to the assembled roster by placing Philadelphia among the leading title contenders for the 2027 championship, behind only the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs.
The historical stakes for both players
Philadelphia’s championship drought stretches back to 1983. If James leads the 76ers to a title, he would become the first player in NBA history to win a championship with four different franchises, having previously won with Miami, Cleveland and the Lakers.
Durant’s comparison carries particular weight because of the source. The Warriors dynasty he helped build was the standard against which all recent superteam constructions have been measured, and his view that Philadelphia’s collection of scorers exceeds even that standard is the kind of analysis that commands attention. He acknowledged that having himself on those Warriors teams somewhat undercuts the raw comparison, but his point about the 76ers’ scoring depth stood on its own.
Olympic ambitions for a second career
Speaking at the same event, he said he intends to pursue a spot on the 2028 United States Olympic team in Los Angeles. Durant would be 39 years old during the competition, and if selected and if the Americans win the men’s tournament for the sixth consecutive time, he would become the first men’s basketball player in history to earn five Olympic gold medals.
He and James won gold together in 2012 in London and again in 2024 in Paris. The two share one of the most decorated Olympic partnerships in American basketball history.
He said the decision about his Olympic inclusion rests with USA Basketball’s leadership rather than with him, and described his role as simply staying at the level of play that would make him worth selecting. Durant is 37 and has spoken about wanting to extend his playing career for as long as he can compete at an elite level.
The 76ers as the league’s new story
Durant’s endorsement reflects a broader shift in how the NBA world is talking about Philadelphia heading into next season. A team that struggled past the second round despite having Embiid and Maxey added two All-Stars in one offseason, and James changes the narrative entirely.
Whether four elite scorers can mesh into a cohesive championship team is the question the season will answer. Durant, who knows from experience how difficult that translation can be, seemed to think the answer is yes.
