Devin Booker, Kevin Durant shine as Team USA wins gold medal at 2024 Paris Olympics vs. France

With a 98-87 win over France in Saturday’s final matchup, Team USA Basketball is bringing home gold once again on the men’s side. And the best part for Phoenix Suns fans? Devin Booker and Kevin Durant not only started in the gold medal game, but played instrumental roles in finishing the job.

Although Stephen Curry led the way with 24 points and eight 3-pointers in a late-game barrage to hold off France’s comeback attempt, Booker was Team USA’s best player in the first half, and Durant chipped in throughout the game to help keep the Americans in front.

Booker finished his night with 15 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists, shooting 6-for-10 overall and 2-for-5 from 3-point range. He led the Americans in scoring through three quarters and finished as a team-high +18 in 28 minutes.

Durant (a.k.a. Captain America) matched his Suns teammate with 15 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists, shooting 5-of-12 overall and 3-for-9 from downtown. He was a +7 in his 31 minutes and got cooking in the second half to give Team USA some breathing room before Curry’s late-game takeover.

LeBron James added 14 points, 10 assists and 6 rebounds, while Anthony Davis and Anthony Edwards chipped in 8 points apiece.

Durant is now the only man in Olympic basketball history to win four gold medals, while Booker is a two-time gold medalist. Let’s get to the game recap and highlights from the gold medal win!

Team USA gold medal recap and highlights for Devin Booker and Kevin Durant

The two Suns starters helped get Team USA off to a strong start, with Devin Booker and Kevin Durant scoring 10 of the Americans’ first 12 points and assisting on the other bucket.

KD’s assist to LeBron James for a dunk got things started, followed by a Booker 3 and then a Booker assist on Durant’s first 3, which came off an imposing block at the rim by James:

Book got a fast break bucket after that, but the best highlight of the first quarter was an absolutely gorgeous, behind-the-back feed from LeBron to a cutting Booker for an easy layup:

Booker had a team-high 7 points and 1 assist after the first quarter, while Durant added 3 points on 1-of-3 shooting from deep. Book also got into it a bit with France, leading to a kerfuffle and some words being exchanged.

Ant-Man got off to a much better start off than his semifinal performance against Serbia, chipping in 6 quick points off the bench as the Americans held a 20-15 lead after the first quarter.

However, the bench unit struggled in that second quarter, with Jayson Tatum replacing Derrick White’s minutes after days of controversy (and Boston Celtics fans whining) reached a fever pitch. Durant’s 1-for-5 start from 3 didn’t help during that stretch, but the Ant-Tatum lineup floundered in the second quarter, with France using an 8-0 run to take a brief 25-24 lead.

The starters checked back in, and Team USA immediately stabilized. Booker drilled another 3 to give him a team-high 10 points, then turned down a 3 and made a great extra pass to help get Steph Curry going with a wide-open triple.

The French showed some fight, as Guerschon Yabusele made the play of the tournament with an unbelievable poster over LeBron James:

But the ball movement for Team USA drastically improved once the starters checked back in. Booker got out for a tough and-one in transition, and not long afterward, James found Curry on a baseline cut, leading to a wide-open triple for Durant:

At halftime, the United State held a 49-41 advantage, led by a team-high 13 points from Devin Booker. Book also added 2 rebounds and 2 assists (both for 3-pointers) on 5-of-7 shooting, and he was a +12 in 12 minutes of action. Durant, meanwhile, added 6 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds on 2-of-6 shooting from long range.

In the third quarter, the Americans once again built up a double-digit lead (and gave us another classic Joel Embiid meme), but 7 turnovers in the final 6 minutes of the quarter gave France an opening. The bench was once again a problem, as Tatum and Edwards both finished as a -5 in their minutes in the gold medal game.

Team USA’s lead shrank to 6 points entering the final frame, but the good news was Durant knocked down a pair of midrange jumpers to get himself going a bit. He also found Ant on the break for a pretty alley-oop finish:

Booker still led the way through three quarters with a team-high 13 points, while Durant added 10. Durant continued that momentum in the fourth, drilling a clutch triple as France started making a push.

But in the fourth quarter, it was the Steph Curry Show down the stretch, holding off France as they cut the lead to 6 points again and then as low as 3 points. Once it became a one-possession game, Curry drilled four more 3-pointers to close the door and secure the gold for Team USA.

The final dagger was absolutely ridiculous, but don’t overlook the third one, which came off an assist from Booker where the Suns star turned down a floater and instead fed the hot hand — once again showing why he earned so many minutes alongside living legends like Steph Curry, LeBron James and Kevin Durant.

All in all, it was a successful tournament for Team USA and the Suns, as Kevin Durant became the first men’s player to win four gold medals in Olympic history and set the Team USA Olympic scoring record for both men’s and women’s basketball.

Devin Booker, meanwhile, won his second gold medal and established himself as one of the team’s most valuable role players who was willing to do the dirty work…even if it took the rest of the world way too long to see it.

Ultimately, Booker finished as a team-best +130 in 11 games for Team USA, while Durant was an impressive +84 in just six appearances. That’s why two Phoenix Suns were starting for one of the most talented Team USA squads of all time.

Despite committing 17 turnovers on the night, Team USA took care of business when it mattered most and brought home the gold. After such a memorable summer in Paris, Suns fans should be very excited about what might be next for Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.