2024 Olympic basketball odds: Kevin Durant surges as new favorite to lead Team USA scoring

Last updated: 2024/07/29 at 5:09 PM

BigP Published July 29, 2024

We’ll never know who would be the straight-up winner between the 1992 Dream Team and 2024 Team USA.

But we do know that Team USA looked dominant in its first official game of the 2024 Paris Olympics, defeating Serbia 110-84.

In that matchup, Kevin Durant had 21 first-half points and 23 total to help lift his squad to victory in the Americans’ opening game.

As a result, his odds to be the USA’s top scorer for the tournament surged to +130 from +700.

Let’s dive into the updated odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Most Total Points Scored in Tournament for USA: *

Kevin Durant: +130 (bet $10 to win $23 total)
LeBron James: +140 (bet $10 to win $24 total)
Steph Curry: +900 (bet $10 to win $100 total)
Anthony Edwards: +1400 (bet $10 to win $150 total)
Devin Booker: +2500 (bet $10 to win $260 total)
Anthony Davis: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total
Jrue Holiday: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total)
Joel Embiid: +6000 (bet $10 to win $610 total)
Jayson Tatum: +10000 (bet $10 to win $1,010 total)
Derrick White: +15000 (bet $10 to win $1,510 total)
Bam Adebayo: +15000 (bet $10 to win $1,510 total)
Tyrese Haliburton: +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total)

*odds as of 7/29/24

One player whose odds are tumbling is Joel Embiid. At the beginning of the Games, Embiid had the shortest odds to be Team USA’s leading scorer at +400. Now those odds have lengthened all the way to +6000.

The former MVP from the 76ers had a quiet five points in the squad’s opening showcase against the Canadians and had an even quieter four points in the USA’s opening official game against Serbia.

Skip Bayless said on “Undisputed” that Embiid’s lack of conditioning could be the culprit.

“Joel Embiid is not going to get in shape because he’s so far out of shape,” co-host Bayless said recently. “I think he’s a borderline liability right now because I know his game and he is way overweight and way out of shape.”

Another player whose odds have tumbled is Jayson Tatum.

He didn’t see the court at all in Team USA’s first game and his odds to be the squad’s leading scorer moved all the way to +10000 from +1000.

“In their next game against South Sudan on Wednesday, I think you’re gonna see [Tatum] play among the most minutes of anybody,” FOX Sports basketball broadcaster John Fanta said on Monday’s episode of “The Carton Show.”

“We said when Kevin Durant becomes part of this team … there’s going to be an odd man out.”

So who are you backing to lead Team USA in scoring at the Paris Games?

Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!