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Never one to mince words either on social media or in real life, future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant very well may have saved this year’s All-Star game by taking direct shots at the effort, or lack thereof, of the European players. He particularly called out Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic.
The effort displayed by NBA players in the All-Star game has been a topic of conversation for basically two decades now, with the exhibition seemingly getting worse every year.
While there is plenty of blame to be shared among the players and the league’s executives, Kevin Durant made sure to make it clear that European players like Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic deserve just as much blame as the “old heads” receive.
Kevin Durant calls out European players such as Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic for not caring about the NBA All-Star game
“You should ask the Europeans and the World team if they’re going to compete,” Durant said. “If you look at Luka Dončić and Nikola Jokić now, let’s go back and look at what they do in the All-Star Game. Is that competition? So, we haven’t questioned what they’ve been doing. But we’re going to question the old heads, and the Americans.”
“But these two dudes out there, Luka and Jokić, they don’t care about the game at all. These dudes be laying on the floor. They’re shooting from half court. But you’ve got to worry about the old heads playing hard? I can read between the lines, bro. It’s just an overall topic that everybody’s been talking about.”
At the 2026 NBA All Star game, the World roster consisters of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Deni Avdija, Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgerous-Alexanders, Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Normal Powell, Alperen Sengun, Pascal Siakam, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Victor Wembanyama.
The USA roster has been split into two teams, divided by age. The first — “USA Stars,” the younger team — features Scottie Barnes, Devin Booker, Cade Cunningham, Jalen Duren, Anthony Edwards, Chet Holmgren, Jalen Johnson, and Tyrese Maxey.
The second roster — “USA Stripes,” KD’s aforementioned “old heads” — boasts Jaylen Brown, Jaylen Brunson, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, De’Aaron Fox, Brandon Ingram, LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard and Donovan Mitchwell.