Kevin Durant states the obvious about 2028 Olympics with one big caveat

Imagine Kevin Durant being washed. Hard to do, right? Even at 36 years old, a decline doesn't appear to be on the horizon. Durant is coming off another astonishingly efficient season in which he shot 43% from 3-point on 6.0 attempts and posted an eFG% of 59.8. He's still Kevin Durant. And if he's still Kevin Durant in 2028, then he plans to play for the USA Basketball team at the Olympics in Los Angeles.

When asked about his plans for the event and if he wants to play, Durant responded with, simply, "Yeah, if I'm still me."

That seems fair. Durant will be 39 when the Olympics roll around again, which doesn't sound nearly as old as it used to considering LeBron is still playing at this level at 40 years old and Steph is doing it at 37. The "old guard" refuses to retire (or even decline considerably on the court) but I don't think anyone really minds. Except that one guy with the "this won't go on much longer" tweet about LeBron. I digress.

I don't think Kevin Durant's production is going to fall off a cliff in the next three seasons. Even if the numbers dip a bit in Houston, that likely won't be from a lessening skillset, moreso from KD just not being asked to do quite as much on a championship-caliber roster. But the historically good scoring efficiency is not going anywhere anytime soon.

Durant's contract could play into Olympics plans

With just one year remaining on his contract, Durant is set to hit unrestricted free agency next summer, and it will be fascinating to see what (and where) his deal is. If he signs a deal longer than two years, that would almost feel like him guaranteeing one more Olympics run; him foregoing one more shot at global glory while still playing in the league doesn't seem realistic. If he doesn't play in LA in 2028, it would probably be because he retired, right?

Or, if he doesn't play in the Olympics in 2028, maybe he'll have transitioned to investing full-time in drone companies that provide aerial surveillance for the government. I'd actually prefer he did that no-time, but that's a piece for another day, I suppose.

Kevin Durant is definitely still Kevin Durant. The Rockets are hoping that he's enough to take them to the promised land of the NBA, and USA Basketball is hoping he remains Kevin Durant for long after that, too.