Kevin Durant

Kevin Wayne Durant, also known by his initials KD or his nickname "the Slim Reaper", is an American professional basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Born on September 29, 1988, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players and scorers of all time. Durant has won two NBA championships, an NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award, two NBA Finals MVP Awards, two NBA All-Star Game MVP Awards, four NBA scoring titles, and the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. He has been named to 12 All-NBA teams, selected 16 times as an NBA All-Star, and named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.

Durant was born in Washington, D.C., to Wanda Durant and Wayne Pratt. After his father deserted the family during his infancy, Durant was raised by his mother and grandmother, Barbara Davis, before his father reentered his life when Durant was 13. Raised in Prince George's County, Maryland, Durant reached six feet in height by middle school and played Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball, wearing jersey number 35 in honor of his AAU coach, Charles Craig. He played high school basketball at National Christian Academy, Oak Hill Academy, and Montrose Christian School, earning honors as the Washington Post All-Met Basketball Player of the Year and MVP of the 2006 McDonald's All-American Game.

Durant played one season of college basketball for the Texas Longhorns in 2006–07, averaging 25.8 points, 11.1 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game. He helped lead Texas to a 25–10 record and an NCAA Tournament appearance. Following the season, Durant was named the unanimous national player of the year, winning the John R. Wooden Award and the Naismith College Player of the Year Award. He became the first freshman in history to win a national college player of the year award, and his No. 35 jersey was later retired by the program.

Selected second overall by the Seattle SuperSonics in the 2007 NBA draft, Durant won Rookie of the Year honors in his first season. The franchise relocated in 2008 to become the Oklahoma City Thunder, where Durant spent nine seasons. During his time with Oklahoma City, he won three consecutive scoring titles from 2010 to 2012, became the youngest player to join the 50–40–90 shooting club in 2013, and won a fourth scoring title along with the NBA MVP Award for the 2013–14 season after averaging 32.0 points per game. He also led the Thunder to an NBA Finals appearance in 2012.

In July 2016, Durant signed with the Golden State Warriors, where he won back-to-back NBA championships and Finals MVP Awards in 2017 and 2018. After sustaining an Achilles injury in the 2019 NBA Finals, he joined the Brooklyn Nets as a free agent. He later requested a trade in 2022 and was traded to the Phoenix Suns in 2023. Following two full seasons with Phoenix, Durant was traded to the Houston Rockets in July 2025.

As a member of the U.S. national team, Durant won gold at the 2010 FIBA World Championship and four Olympic gold medals in 2012, 2016, 2020, and 2024. He is the leading scorer in Team USA Olympic basketball history and the first male athlete to win four Olympic gold medals in a team sport. Off the court, Durant signed a long-term endorsement deal with Nike in 2007 and has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid athletes. He was also named to Time's 100 most influential people list in 2018.