Durant calls Iverson the best basketball player ever pound-for-pound

Las Vegas, Nevada – Kevin Durant, the captain of Team U.S.A.’s men’s basketball team admitted that he was flattered when he found out that Allen Iverson named him his favorite player in the NBA right now.

After their practice, Durant shared that he has the same respect for The Answer.

“It’s a huge compliment [being Iverson’s favorite player]. I wore number 3 before because of Allen Iverson. He changed the whole culture of the game. He’s pound for the pound the best player who ever played,” said Durant. “Six-foot, 155 pounds, that’s unheard of, unseen.”

Durant also said that he learned a lot from Iverson. Although the Oklahoma City Thunder star is as tall as other power forwards in the league, his skillset could pass for a guard. Some of the credit goes to Iverson’s style of play, which Durant tried to emulate when he was younger.

“I have tremendous respect for Iverson because of the way he changed the game,” Durant said. “It was an honor just to play with him for two or three years because he was still here when I came in.”

Even today, years removed from playing in the NBA, Iverson’s name is still mentioned a lot in basketball circles, which is also the reason why he’s coming over to the Philippines this November to coach an exhibition game.

Durant also talked at length about his healthy relationship with Team U.S.A. head coach Mike Krzyzewski. Unlike Iverson, who had difficult relationships with most of his coaches not named Larry Brown, Durant’s relationship with Coach K has been nothing but smooth sailing.

“He just wanted me to be the leader of the team. Me and Coach K have a really tight relationship,” Durant said. “We talk throughout the season. He wishes me luck during my games. He’s more like family to me and I’m happy to have another shot at playing for him.”

Regarding the competition, Durant admits that he has a lot of respect for all the teams that qualified.

“We know that it’s not going to be easy because those guys have so much pride. All of the guys who play in the league play differently when they’re doing it for their countries,” he shared. “You got to respect them. We’re excited to compete with them because they’re so fundamentally sound.”