Kevin Durant donated $10M to fight poverty in his hometown

Kevin Durant grew up in Seat Pleasant, Maryland, a small city just outside Washington, D.C.

Eighty percent of his Black neighbors there lived in poverty.

That number comes from Durant himself, writing in a 2018 article for Andscape.

He recalled the poverty, the crime and the police brutality that surrounded him as a child.

Basketball, he said, was his escape.

“I had a laser focus on achieving what was necessary to leave my community,” Durant wrote.

But leaving wasn’t the end of the story.

In 2018, Durant donated $10 million to build a college-preparatory center in Seat Pleasant.

The facility is called the Durant Center.

It was created through a partnership between Durant, Prince George’s County Public Schools and College Track.

College Track is an after-school program that helps underserved students prepare for college.

Before expanding to Seat Pleasant, College Track had operated for more than two decades in California.

By 2018, its programs nationwide had helped 3,000 students enroll in college.

The Durant Center was the first of three College Track centers planned for the Washington, D.C., area, according to The Washington Post.

The 10-year program offers academic support, test preparation, financial aid resources and guidance in choosing colleges.

Durant told The Washington Post, “I want to do my part, whatever it is.”

He also wrote in Andscape, “We need to invest in our own communities. Invest in our kids.”

Looking back on his own childhood, Durant said he wished he had realized sooner how he could give back.

“I believe communities will blossom and our country as a whole will be better because of it,” he added.

The Durant Center reflects that conviction.

It is a concrete example of a superstar using his platform and his money to address a problem he lived through.

This story was originally published by Parade on November 5, 2026.

It appeared in the Celebs section of that publication.

The timing of the report comes amid a broader conversation about Durant’s legacy.

Earlier in the week, the Oklahoma City Thunder announced they would retire Russell Westbrook’s No. 0 jersey.

That announcement sparked a polarizing question among fans and analysts: should Kevin Durant’s jersey be retired by the Thunder too?

Durant played seven seasons in Oklahoma City, winning four scoring titles, an MVP award and leading the team to the NBA Finals in 2012.

He was named an All-Star in every one of those seasons.

But his departure in 2016 — joining the Golden State Warriors after losing to them in the Western Conference Finals — left a complicated legacy in OKC.

Some fans still hold a grudge.

Others argue his on-court accomplishments are undeniable.

A discussion on Thunderous Intentions noted that the franchise may be stuck between a rock and a hard place.

If they retire Durant’s jersey, some fans will be angry.

If they don’t, the integrity of the jersey retirement process could be questioned.

GM Sam Presti has not yet indicated the team’s direction on the matter.

But the Parade article reframes the conversation entirely.

It asks whether the drama over Durant’s shots — the debates about his legacy, his decisions, his team changes — should really matter.

The answer, according to the source material, is complicated.

Durant grew up in a neighborhood where the vast majority of people lived in poverty.

He saw crime and police brutality firsthand.

He used basketball as a way out.

And once he had the means, he poured $10 million back into the same community.

The Durant Center is not a photo op.