NFL
By: Mark Wilson
What’s the point? Why is Kevin Durant taking so much flack for his time with the Golden State Warriors? When he signed, he was labeled a traitor for turning his back on Oklahoma City and Russell Westbrook. While there may be some truth to that, fans always lose track that the NBA is a business. The players’ job is to win a title. Durant did all he could do on an individual level, what was missing was team success.
So, while other teams threw the kitchen sink at Durant during his free agency phase, he chose the Warriors. Was he wrong? But this is where fans and analysts made their minds up regarding Durant.
He went to a team, in just the prior season won an NBA record 73 games. But they fell short of winning a title. Those 73 games won were great for the regular season record books but losing to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers was something they didn’t want to go through again. So, why not woo Durant?
Durant had his choice of teams. Was he supposed to pick the New York Knicks and their struggling franchise and start a rebuild all over again? Was he to join James in Cleveland when they didn’t have the funds for him? Here was his chance to join a team with the firepower he hoped the Thunder would have provided him and Westbrook. But those same critics were the same ones pawning for Durant to join their team.
Durant spent three seasons with the Warriors and won two championships and could have taken home a third if he didn’t get injured. But all fans gripe about is that he went somewhere to play second fiddle to Stephen Curry in the Bay Area.
Ummm no.
Yes, the Warriors won a title before Durant arrived but that was against a broken-down and hobbled Cavaliers’ team with no Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving. With both teams healthy, the Cavs turned the tables and took home the title the following season. 73 wins and they were not good enough to win WITHOUT Durant. The Warriors themselves KNEW and understood they were not good enough. So, if the blame is to go anywhere, put that on Golden State. Let’s be real about that.
Durant would enter the stage and put the Warriors on his back. His presence opened the door for Curry and Klay Thompson to take more chances from deep and allow Draymond Green to be more aggressive on the defensive end. But all people look to is that he rode the curtails of Curry and the Big 3 in The Bay to two titles.
Who was the leading scorer while Durant was there? Who was the leading scorer in the playoffs while Durant was there? Who took and made the big shots during the Finals while Durant was there? He didn’t play second-fiddle to anyone. They played second-fiddle to him.
Is Kevin Durant perfect? No. But the hits he has taken for going to Golden State are not fair. The NBA as a whole has gone that route and all he did was come in and win. The Warriors won a title without Durant but they won it against a team nowhere near 100%. Yes, that title counts but when they ran it back, all that smiling was gone as they watched Cleveland celebrate.
Kevin Durant was their answer for the Cavaliers. But fans must answer this question and be real with themselves. Who needed whom more, Durant or Golden State?
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