Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker expects "exciting times" after Kevin Durant's trade made the rest of the NBA stand up and take notice.
Durant's move to Phoenix represents a big acquisition for new Suns owner Mat Ishbia, who completed his takeover last week and acted swiftly to bring in the 13-time All-Star and two-time NBA Finals MVP.
The 34-year-old, joining from the Brooklyn Nets with T.J. Warren, has averaged 29.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists this season.
After hitting the courts with Durant – who has been out of action over a month due to a knee injury – Booker hailed the small forward's quality as he lauded the Suns for attracting such talent.
"You can't put it into words, man," Booker said on Tuesday. "It's just all feeling. Looking forward to the post-All-Star break when we actually get the chance to compete with each other.
"I've never got to do that besides the Olympics with Kev, so it's exciting times around here.
"We built something that the league has picked up on. We were probably the laughingstock of the NBA about four or five years ago, and just turning that around to something serious to championship contenders is a quick turnaround for us, so we take a lot of pride in what we've built here.
"People reach out and they're like 'Oh, that's what y'all are on?' Just trying to get it done, man. Just trying to get it done.
"For us to be a destination that Kev wanted to come to is a big sign of that, to show respect for what we've done so far. We still have more to do, but we're moving in the right direction."
Phoenix fell narrowly short in the 2021 Finals against the Milwaukee Bucks, losing 4-2, and Booker believes the Suns will soon achieve glory as they assemble their squad.
"One-hundred per cent. We kind of had the same approach with the team before the trade. Once you get a taste of Finals experience and having that under your belt, that's all that you want," he said.
"We have one goal; we know it's not going to be easy to get there, but we feel we have the talent, we have the mindset and everything it takes right here in this gym."
While Durant arrives with a major reputation and experience at the top of the game, Booker does not expect the Suns to have to adjust much to another star player.
"We don't have a hierarchy," he continued. "That's the thing about it. You have Chris Paul, one of the greatest leaders of all time. You have coach Monty [Williams], you have [general manager] James Jones, we have guys that are all on the same plan.
"I think we all have different types of leading styles, which is the great thing about leadership it comes in many different forms. And I think all of our games, and our mindsets, complement each other very well."
Booker sees Durant as "one of the best to ever do it", as he added: "It's just something that you got to be around. To feel when you're around greatness.
"It's just a different look, a different feel – but I'm excited to be a part of it."
The 31-27 Suns sit fourth in the Western Conference and host the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday.
Kerr demands improvements from Team USA as Olympic opener looms
United States coach Steve Kerr wants to see higher levels of intensity from his team as their Olympics campaign approaches.
Kerr was unhappy with the lacklustre displays from his side in their warm-ups against Germany and South Sudan.
Germany led 71-68 at the end of the third quarter before LeBron James conjured up 11 points in the final four minutes to give the USA a 92-88 win, while South Sudan were 20 seconds away from pulling off one of the biggest shocks in basketball history, before eventually falling to a 101-100 loss.
The USA face a dangerous Serbia side featuring reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic on Sunday, and Kerr is adamant that improvements are required if they are to win a fifth consecutive Olympic gold medal.
He said: "It's got to be 40 minutes of force and attention and focus, and we can't let teams outplay us effort and energy-wise like we did the other night against Germany, like we did against South Sudan.
“We have another level. I think we have another two levels that we can get to, but it's a collaboration, always.
"We can show them, 'Let's do this, let's do that. Let's learn personnel.'
"We got to know the shooters, know the non-shooters, all that stuff. So that's where we can help them. Where they can help themselves is just effort and energy play after play, after play. This is different."
Kerr is a four-time NBA champion as a coach, and was part of the triumphant Olympics team in Tokyo in 2021, but the Golden State Warriors boss knows the experience of the Games will only be enhanced if the USA were to come out on top again.
"This should be one of the great experiences of our lives. But the best way to make it an incredible experience is to win a gold medal," he said.
After facing Serbia, the USA will once again go up against South Sudan, this time in a competitive format, before ending the group stage with a match against Puerto Rico.
Durant warns Team USA 'everybody is a contender' in Olympic basketball tournament
Kevin Durant has warned Team USA they will not have an easy ride through the basketball tournament at the Paris Olympic Games, declaring: "Everybody is a contender".
The United States will go in search of a fifth straight men's basketball gold in the French capital, where they open their Group C campaign against Serbia on Sunday.
After that meeting with Nikola Jokic and company, the star-studded USA team featuring Durant, LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Joel Embiid and a host of other NBA stars take on South Sudan and Puerto Rico.
With Steve Kerr having so much talent at his disposal, the roster has been compared to that of the 1992 'Dream Team', who took gold in Barcelona behind the efforts of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Scottie Pippen and other great names.
However, at a press conference ahead of Team USA's 2024 opener, Curry reminded reporters that the class of 1992 only faced nine other active NBA players.
Durant is expecting a much tougher assignment this year, responding to Curry by saying: "Everybody is a contender. Everyone is here for a reason.
"We're playing against 65 or 64 NBA players in Paris. So you know they're the best in the world."
Asked to identify the main players to watch from other nations, the Phoenix Suns forward said: "Giannis [Antetokounmpo] or Jokic."
While Durant adopted a cautious tone, Golden State Warriors star Curry was more bullish regarding the USA's gold medal hopes.
Quizzed on who he was most excited about facing, Curry simply said: "Whoever's in the gold medal game."
Knicks, head coach Thibodeau agree to three-year contract extension
The New York Knicks and head coach Tom Thibodeau have agreed to a three-year contract extension through the 2027-28 season.
New York went 50-32 last season to earn the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference before losing to the Indiana Pacers in the semi-finals of the play-offs.
The Knicks were also ousted in the East semis in 2022-23 and reached the play-offs during Thibodeau’s first season in 2021-22, when he won his second NBA Coach of the Year award.
Prior to 2021-22, New York’s previous post-season appearance came in 2013.
The Knicks have gone 175-143 over the last four seasons under Thibodeau, who earned his first NBA Coach of the Year award in 2011 as a rookie head coach with the Chicago Bulls.
The 66-year-old Thibodeau owns a 527-389 record in 12 seasons as a head coach with Chicago, the Minnesota Timberwolves and New York.
His teams have gone 38-47 in the post-season, and Thibodeau’s only appearance in the conference finals came in his rookie head coach season.
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