The Landscape of the N.B.A will never be the same…
2016 has been a wild year in the NBA… OKC loses a 3–1 lead to the Warriors in the western conference finals, the Warriors on the brink of a championship lose a 3–1 lead due to Lebron James and Kyrie Irving playing the best three games of their lives to bring the Larry O’Brien Trophy back to the land…. What a season?!?
As the NBA season wrapped up we all transitioned ourselves to the next big part of the season.. free agency… With all of the crazy deals being done, eg. Mike Conley, 5 years, 153 million dollars, Chandler Parsons 4 years, 94 mil, everyone still waited for an answer to the question of the summer “Where will Kevin Durant go?” We all think we’re NBA analysts, we all thought he would do this; sign a two year deal with OKC, give it a go with Westbrook one last time and then bolt next summer if things didn’t pan out.
Everyone on every sports channel, sports show thought he would do that… but instead.. he did this..
“The primary mandate I had for myself in making this decision was to have it based on the potential for my growth as a player — as that has always steered me in the right direction. But I am also at a point in my life where it is of equal importance to find an opportunity that encourages my evolution as a man: moving out of my comfort zone to a new city and community which offers the greatest potential for my contribution and personal growth. With this in mind, I have decided that I am going to join the Golden State Warriors.”
Wait… wait… wait…. Did he just say the Warriors?.. That’s exactly who he just said… Kevin Durant shocked the world decided to go to the team who beat him in the playoffs, The Golden State Warriors..
Why Kevin? Why!!!!!!
My first response to the news was shock and disbelief. Not to the fact that he left OKC because he had every right to make a move that was best for him. I just didn’t want it to be the Warriors. I wanted him to beat baby face Curry and company and show them that they couldn’t stop him on his way to greatness. Isn’t that what sports is about? To climb the mountain until you reach the mountain top? To face all obstacles until you conquer them and reap your reward? The reasons for KD to stay were in abundance, reasons that I mainly agreed with.
- “You’re the man in OKC, why leave?
- “You’re playing with Westbrook, Y’all can get it done.”
- You had “them” down 3–1, you had them!!!, you had them!!.”
The list goes on and on… But KD knew in his heart of hearts… His time in OKC had expired. It was time to move on. Even with all that, I wanted answers, the fans of OKC and the basketball world wanted answers. That’s the least we deserved. So on July 7th, he was properly introduced to the GSW media and organization. In a way that only KD could provide, he gave a genuine level of transparency that I truly do respect.
“People will vilify you KD, are you ready for that?”
“I can’t control that. All I can control is how I come to work every single day and what I do to help this team win. I knew that was a part of this whole deal. That’s just the life we live. But every single day all I can control is how I work. And I can’t really worry about the outside noise.”
“You just broke up with OKC and went for the new girl in GSW. How did you come up with that decision and what was that break up conversation like?”
“We sat down and went through the pros and cons of every team, every situation. We looked at it all, and they were there to support me, to be there for me, and I trusted them. I think the third, the night before, Fourth of July… we were talking and I was just torn, and I told them I wanted to sleep on it. I woke up about 7 o’clock in the morning and I walked in the room — everyone was asleep — and I woke them up and I just said ‘I want to go to the Warriors,’ … and we all gave each other hugs and we moved on from there. We knew a lot of attention was gonna come. We just stuck to what I wanted to do, and we moved on. That call to Oklahoma City was the hardest thing I ever had to do in my life. Tears were shed, but like I said this is a new journey for me, testing the unknown. I trusted my gut, I trusted my instincts. It’s an unpopular decision, but I can live with it.”
“Dudes out here saying you’re taking the easy road, saying you can’t handle real adversity, what do you say to that?”
“Nothing in this league is easy. There’s no shortcuts. We’ve still got 82 games to play. Obviously (there’s) an adjustment period. I think that this is the hardest road because I don’t know everybody here, I’ve never lived in this community, never played for this team, and I took a leap. Steph (Curry) was one guy who texted me a couple days before who said ‘trust what we’re saying.’ It took me a couple hours to really think about that. It’s hard for me to just trust somebody I just met and just talked to and making this huge change, but, like I said, I went with my gut and my instincts and trusted the situation. It’s not an easy situation because I’m out of my comfort zone. I’m looking forward to learning and getting better every single day, and I know there’s gonna be ups and downs throughout the season. I know we’re expected to be perfect every single day, but I know that’s not realistic. I’m super excited. I’m pumped to get started.”
“That resentment will be real. No other way to put it. You’re the bad guy. This role isn’t for everybody. You saw how they did Lebron. I hope you know what you’re doing.”
“Ahh … ahh … nah. We live in this super hero, comic book world where either you’re a villain or a super hero if you end up in this position, and I know that. But I know I haven’t changed as a person. I don’t treat people any differently because I made a decision to play basketball in another city. I understand the fans in Oklahoma City and basketball fans around the world are I guess upset. But like I said, I made a decision based on what I wanted to do and how I felt, and that’s the best decision for me so I can’t really control how you. I’m sorry you feel that way but I’m gonna continue to live my life. My life goes on, and I’ve got a short amount of time left to play basketball. I just want to enjoy every single day of it.”
After watching that interview, I was still disappointed with KD’s decision but I understood it. With our athletes we hold them to a standard that we would nor could ever understand. I get it, we want them to earn everything they get but in this NBA world now, if you don’t win or a ring, people forget about what you do for your whole career. That’s a pressure that not everyone can live up to. If KD would have went back to OKC , I honestly think he could have gotten it done and overcome the Warriors. KD felt otherwise.
No one will ever truly know his thought process, but I’m sure there was a combination of aspects that caused him to make the jump to the Warriors. Even as I type it, it still stings. Watching the WCF, I felt OKC was built to get this done. After they lost, KD knew this team probably plateaued but we will never know if they truly did and that is what upset me most. We will always ask “what if.” KD is ok with leaving those questions up in the air, and I think that’s what hurts everyone the most, especially the OKC faithful.
So Why do I think he left you ask?
KD wanted a new basketball experience. He possibly grew tired of having to distinguish who was “the man”. He wanted to just play but not have to shoulder all of the load. When you think about it, what would you have done? Can you say you would go back to OKC. Put yourself in KD’s shoes. That’s what fans fail to do at times. We feel that our favorite player owes us something and that he lives to make us happy. They deserve to do what’s best for them. They deserve to be happy. They don’t deserve to live by a standard that the fans themselves probably couldn’t live up to if they were in KD’s position. I’ve always respected KD and respected his approach to the game. He’s always been a great ambassador to the NBA and if this is his worst action towards fans, I’ll take it. The NBA will still be competitive. Ok fine, it won’t be per say because it looks like a Warriors-Cavs III in the finals but who cares? You’ll still watch and I’ll still root for the Cavs because I can’t stand the Warriors. All will be well with the world.
KD is a dude that you want to see win. He isn’t arrogant. (Lord Help me if Draymond Green’s cocky attitude rubs off on him) He just wants to play ball and have fun. He’s not cheating his way to a chip like Sir Charles stated. He just wanted a new environment to flourish in. Damn I wish he stayed. But he didn’t. He will go down as a HOF’er and one of the most dynamic players ever. But as long as he wears a Warriors uniform, I can’t root for him. He’s teammates with Green and I can’t co-sign that. Lol.
Only a talent of KD’s stature could shift the landscape of the league and on July 7th, 2016 thats exactly what he did. Let’s see how things pan out from here on. I can’t wait to see and I’m sure you can’t wait either.