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The Brooklyn Nets are yet to find a team that will meet their lofty demands for Kevin Durant. Darius Soriano thinks the Nets can do what Dr. Jerry Buss did with Kobe Bryant in 2007.
Bryant wanted a change of scenery shortly after Shaquille O'Neal left in 2004. Although he stated that the Chicago Bulls were his first choice, a deal never materialized. Black Mamba went on to win two more titles with the Lakers in 2009 and 2010.
Soriano stated that the Nets could try a similar approach, although there are no guarantees it will produce the same results. He was unable to speak about Joe Tsai's relationship with KD, if it was anything like that of Dr. Buss and Bryant.
On the Laker Film Room podcast, Soriano said:
"Can the Nets navigate this and come out of the other side and say, 'Hey, we tried,' which is exactly what Dr. Buss did with Kobe. He was like, 'Hey, we've tried. There's nothing here for us. Let's come back to the table, and let's start the season, and let's see how things go.'
"Luckily for the Lakers, there was all of the shared history there between the two. They had won these championships, and Dr. Buss famously, in the same way, that he did with Magic Johnson.
"He built relationships with the best players on the team so that he could have these sort of candid conversations and talk through things and come out on the other side okay and ready a step forward.
"Whether or not KD has that relationship with anyone in Brooklyn I think remains to be seen. But the parallels are there for the idea of like, ' 'Hey, man, there's no deal for us to make.' And so, we'll see what happens with KD."
Jalen Rose believes the Nets have a legitimate chance of winning the East if Durant and Kyrie Irving stay. As the days go by, it is increasingly likely that a trade for both players will not materialize.
Also Checkout:- Kobe Bryant Rings
Kevin Durant has played two seasons with the Brooklyn Nets
KD joined the Nets after sustaining an Achilles injury in the 2019 NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors. With Durant going down, the Golden State Warriors lost their opportunity to three-peat, eventually losing the series to the Raptors.
That offseason, Durant signed with the Nets as a free agent. However, he sat out the entire 2019-20 season due to injury.
After making a full recovery, the two-time NBA champ returned to action at the start of the 2020-21 season. He led the Nets to a second-place finish in the Eastern Conference.
Unfortunately, their season ended with a 4-3 loss against the Milwaukee Bucks in the conference semifinals. The Nets lost Kyrie Irving and James Harden to injury, leaving KD to contend with the Bucks singlehandedly.
Although Kevin Durant was brought in to help win the title, the four-time scoring champ is yet to achieve that. Last season, they were swept in the first round by the Boston Celtics.
Guess the Lakers players!
