Durant's All-Star appearance elevates him among legends. He's on pace to climb scoring and games played lists, etching his legacy further.
Tonight will mark Kevin Durant’s 13th year playing in an All-Star game. The future Hall of Fame forward is set to join yet another list amongst the greats. Due to the new tournament format, his two games last year put him at 13 games played in 12 appearances.
Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Garnett are the other players with 14 All-Star games played, and KD will surpass them to join Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan with 15 games. If he makes it to the finals tonight and plays three games, that’ll be his 16th, placing him solely in 3rd place.
KD’s journey started slower than some others, somehow only getting selected in his third year. This is despite him averaging 20.3 points per game his Rookie of the Year outing, then upping it to 25.3 in his second year, per Basketball-Reference.
After that first selection in 2010, Durant saw a ten year stretch of being an All-Star. He was selected as a starter from 2011 to 2019, winning MVP of the event in 2012 and 2019. A pretty great run through the prime of his career with the Thunder and Warriors.
Though he didn’t participate any of the times he got selected as an All-Star in Brooklyn, he was actually named a captain twice. This made for some fun draft moments with LeBron James, but he unfortunately missed those games with minor injuries from 2021-2023.
After being traded to Phoenix before the 2023 All-Star Game, he also sat that one out with injury. He ultimately earned another invitation with the Suns in 2024 and did play in that game.
Now ready to suit up for his second consecutive appearance with Houston, he only needs 18 points to tie Kobe Bryant for the 2nd most points scored in All-Star Games, per Basketball-Reference.