Kevin Durant and Steph Curry are less egotistical than you

Lots of people aren’t very happy that Kevin Durant made a decision that he was perfectly entitled to make.

Stephen A. Smith, a sports television personality and journalist, and someone who seems to be paid to be controversial, tweeted this about Durant signing with the Warriors:

“Don’t give a damn what anyone says: weak move by KD.”

He then went on to say that Durant signing with the Warriors was the “weakest move” he’d “ever seen by a superstar.”

Charles Barkley, former NBA MVP and zero-time NBA champion, had this to say:

“Kevin is a terrific player. He’s a good kid. But just disappointed with the fact that he weakened another team and he’s gonna kind of gravy train on a terrific Warriors team. Just disappointed from a competitive standpoint.”

Reggie Miller, one of the greatest shooters ever and another zero-time NBA champion, had this to say:

“Kevin Durant traded a sacred legacy for cheap jewellery.”

Some “fans” even took to burning their Durant jerseys.

We’ll come back to all of that. First I want to talk about Steph Curry.

I won’t lie: I wanted the Cavs to win the NBA Finals. I’m a LeBron James fan. That they came back from 3–1 down against a 73–9 team, and that they came back mostly because LeBron had some of the greatest finals performances and plays ever — I enjoyed that. A lot.

Something else I won’t lie about: I thought and believed Steph Curry was cocky. The way he chewed his mouthguard on the court, the way he shot threes (though not in the Finals) and then started running back and looking away before they even went in, and of course the behind-the-back pass on a critical possession in game 7 of the NBA Finals, a pass that went — and deserved to go — out of bounds.

Maybe I’m right. Maybe he is cocky. But I think I’m wrong.

I think I’m wrong because Curry is massively responsible for Durant signing with the Warriors.

Durant is a former MVP. Curry is the reigning two-time MVP. They’ve won the last three MVP awards. Durant said he wanted to meet with Curry because he wanted to look him in the eye and ask him whether or not he was truly comfortable with a player like Durant joining “his” team.

Well, just read this, courtesy of Marc Spears:

Curry apparently felt it necessary to send Durant a message hours after the meeting Friday night to reassure him about his commitment to “Strength In Numbers” and unselfishness.

According to a person who saw the text messages, Curry told Durant in a text message that he could care less about who is the face of the franchise, who gets the most recognition or who sells the most shoes (Curry is with Under Armour, Durant with Nike). The two-time NBA MVP also told Durant that if Durant won the MVP award again he would be in the front row of the press conference clapping for him. In closing, Curry’s message to Durant was that all he truly cared about was winning championships and he’d like to do that as his teammate.

I was surprised to read that. Does that sound like someone who’s cocky? Who’s arrogant? Does it sound like someone who has a massive ego?

Not at all. It sounds like someone who’s ready to sacrifice. He’s ready to sacrifice being the face of the franchise, the MVP, even shoe sales. All because there’s something that’s more important to him:

Winning.

Charles Barkley and Reggie Miller think Durant is doing the wrong thing. They think it would be better for him to win a championship in Oklahoma City, and with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

That’s definitely what Miller thinks. And like I said, he won zero NBA championships.

I’m not sure what Barkley thinks, given that he joined the Houston Rockets to play with Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon, two of the best players in the league at the time. They didn’t win any championships though. Maybe he’s just mad that Durant might now do what he couldn’t.

Whether Durant and Curry have egos or not, whether they have enormous egos or not, one thing is clear: winning is more important to them than winning on their terms.

Everybody wants to win. Everybody says they want to win. But what happens when their role is reduced? What happens when they’re asked to come off the bench? What happens when they’re asked to take fewer shots?

Some players will refuse to do or accept these things because in reality, whether they’ll admit it or not, winning on their terms is more important to them than just winning. Some players would rather be in the starting 5, take all the shots they want, and play as many minutes as possible than do what it actually takes to win. Because satisfying their own ego is more important than winning.

Durant and Curry have proved that they’ve either let go of ego or chosen to look beyond it. They’ve proved that they value winning over winning on their terms.

And, perhaps ironically, that’s exactly why they’re going to do a lot of winning.

That’s exactly why the Golden State Warriors have done more winning over the past two seasons than any other team in NBA history. Their motto is “Strength In Numbers”. It’s not just something they say, or something they want to be, but something they do.

For example, here’s what Klay Thompson, their best two-way player, says about the team:

“We don’t put our egos in the way. I think we’re pretty selfless people. We don’t really care about the individuality of the game. That will come with all the accolades. Winning takes such a precedent. When we win, everyone gets all the love.”

Winning. Not winning with an asterisk.

Another example: Andre Iguodala, a former all star, comes off the bench for the Warriors. He’s one of the smartest players in the league, one of the best defenders, the consummate professional. And he doesn’t even start.

Does he care? Maybe. Who really knows. But does he refuse to do his job? No. Because, again, winning is more important than winning on his terms. Oh, and he also has an NBA championship and a Finals MVP award to show for it. So is sacrificing your ego worth the sacrifice? You tell me.

Kevin Durant tweeted this six years ago:

“Now everybody wanna play for the Heat and the Lakers? Let’s go back to being competitive and going at these peoples!”

Of course, everybody is dragging up now and calling him a hypocrite. People are kind like that.

Would you like to be held to the things you said six years ago? Wouldn’t you be a little embarrassed if someone brought up things you said six years ago? Really, you should be embarrassed. If you hold the exact some opinions as you did six years ago then what have you been doing with your life?

I’m glad people have dragged it up though. It makes me happy for Kevin Durant. Happy that he’s subjugated his ego, and realised than winning on his terms is nowhere near as important as just straight winning.

That’s something for us all to aspire to.

I’ll finish with a quote from Ryan Holiday, from his new book Ego is the Enemy:

“I hope you will be less invested in the story you tell about your own specialness, and as result, you will be liberated to accomplish the world-changing work you’ve set out to achieve.”