It is time to put some respect on Kevin Durant’s name.

Real Olympic respect.

NBA legend status.

One of the best in history to ever dribble a basketball on hard wood or make the net sway.

LeBron James truly was The King and now has a third gold medal that Michael Jordan can only dream of after Team USA outfought France 98-87 on Saturday night.

Steph Curry finally won gold, as the greatest shooter in NBA history finally teamed up with James – his former Finals nemesis.

Then there was KD, who now boasts a record four Olympic gold medals in men’s basketball.

Also known as Durantula, Easy Money Sniper and the coolest nickname in sports — the Slim Reaper.

Team USA struggled from the field in the first quarter but still led 24-17 early, as Antony Davis powered through the paint and Devin Booker (seven points) gave Steve Kerr another offensive weapon.

A flashy, flag-waving crowd watched France take a buzzing 25-24 lead.

Carmelo Anthony, Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol and Sha’Carri Richarsdson were among the front-row celebrities inside Bercy Arena.

Even with Team USA’s mental lapses and oddly timed missed shots, Kerr’s squad regained a 34-29 advantage as a chippy game became more edgy.

It was The King vs Wemby for the future of basketball.

James drilled a 3 to hand Team USA a 68-59 advantage.

Wembanyama and France kept fighting, pulling within 72-66 as the final quarter approached and arena volume peaked.

It was also Durant calmly pouring in super-smooth buckets, cracking the gold medal game starting lineup at 35-years-old, and setting up Anthony Edwards for a rim-jarring, alley-oop dunk at the perfect time.

Anthony Davis played big for Team USA with history on the line.

Without The King, France is a gold medal winner.

But it was Durant bringing the ball up late, KD drawing the French defense, and the Slim Reaper draining a classic Easy Money 3 that made it 77-68 road team just when the USA needed late breathing room.

Durant scored 15 points, grabbed four rebounds, dished out two assists, sank three 3s, and was one of the most essential players on the court in his fourth Olympics.

He has never lost on the world’s biggest stage, scooping gold medals at London 2012, Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020 and now Paris 2024.

It’s time to put some real respect on Durant’s name.