Without an NBA season to occupy him, Kevin Durant will have plenty of time to monitor the many hot takes aimed at him.
Durant’s first summer as a member of the Nets was actually pretty quiet in the aftermath of him signing with the team on July 1. But the release of Durant’s WSJ Magazine interview earlier this month sparked many a controversy.
In that interview, Durant said he never felt like he was treated the same as the players — Draymond Green, Steph Curry and Klay Thompson — who were drafted by Golden State. He also took a shot at Steve Kerr’s motion offense, suggesting you needed to rely more on iso ball as the postseason went on. That is coincidentally the type of offense in which Durant thrives and stands out in.
Curry mostly took the high road when recently asked about it last week with Thompson and Kerr following suit.
“I wasn’t at all offended what Kevin said because it’s basically the truth,” Kerr told The Athletic. “You look at any system, I mean, I played the triangle with Michael Jordan. The offense ran a lot smoother all regular season and the first couple rounds of the playoffs than it did in the conference finals and Finals. It just did.
“That’s why guys like Michael Jordan and Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant are who they are. They can transcend any defense. But defenses in the playoffs, deep in the playoffs, combined with the physicality of the game — where refs can’t possibly call a foul every time — means that superstars have to take over. No system is just going to dice a Finals defense up. You have to rely on individual play. I didn’t look at (his comment) as offensive. I look at that as fact.”
So, everything is cool with Kerr, Thompson and Curry. What about Green?
While not commenting on the WSJ interview, Green did pop up in Durant’s brother’s Instagram comments. Tony Durant posted a photo of him, a woman and Kevin holding a newborn child with “the American Dream” as the caption. Green, who had an on-court feud with Durant that has long been squashed, chimed in as only he can.
“You talked a lot of bulls–t about me…. all good doe… This pic brings me great JOY…. however this is not the American dream… it’s OUR dream,” Green wrote.
But Durant’s biggest issues have seemingly always been with the critics off the court. Feuds he has embraced head on or through Instagram burner accounts. Durant, again to WSJ, said that he had felt a “toxic” atmosphere from Thunder fans after he left Oklahoma City for the Warriors in free agency in 2016. That led to an online spat with a fan.
Then there’s Magic Johnson. The Lakers legend discussed recently why Durant left the Warriors for the Nets on ESPN’s “First Take” and Durant’s feeling as the odd man out in Oakland.
“KD, I hope that he finds happiness, if you can’t find happiness at Golden State, where are you going to find it at?” he said.
Nope, nope, nope.
“Horrible take. Just regurgitated bulls–t,” Durant wrote in a since-deleted tweet.
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