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Kevin Durant ultimately ended up with a team that he again wanted to play for. He is now with the Phoenix Suns, a team that’s ready-made to help KD add another NBA championship to his resume.
Monty Williams, the reigning Coach of the Year, now has Durant, Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton as his stars. It’s a quartet that’s more than capable of carrying the franchise to the NBA Finals.
Here’s NBA analyst Chris Broussard on what it means if Kevin Durant can’t get out of the Western Conference:
"The Suns are absolutely the team to beat in the West. ... If the Suns don't at least win the West, if they're healthy, this is the biggest failure of Kevin Durant's career."
The same was expected of KD when he formed an alliance with Kyrie Irving with the Brooklyn Nets. Expectations rose to another level when they shipped quality players to do a blockbuster trade for former MVP James Harden.
Durant, Harden and Irving, however, played just 16 games together and went 13-3. Due to injuries and various off-court dramas, KD just couldn’t have his co-superstars consistently beside him.
The vaunted trio won just one playoff series when they eliminated the Boston Celtics 4-1 in 2021. Irving and Harden played just four games, a series later, in a seven-game series against the eventual NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks.
One could easily argue that an inch of Kevin Durant’s foot changed the course of NBA history. KD nearly dragged the Brooklyn Nets past the Bucks without two of the league’s most creative scorers.
The following season, a fully healthy Celtics swept the Nets, who didn’t have Ben Simmons. Boston’s physical and unforgiving defense made Durant look old while Kyrie Irving disappeared after a fantastic Game 1.
Some of the things that sabotaged Durant’s much-hyped stint with the Nets were out of his control. He hopes to play with more reliable teammates this time around. If they’re healthy, they are poised to make a deep run in the playoffs.
Win or lose, Kevin Durant has been ripped again for going to another championship-ready team
Kevin Durant received a ton of flak for leaving the OKC Thunder in the summer of 2016. He joined the Golden State Warriors, who went 73-9 the previous season behind Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.
KD promptly went to the NBA Finals with the Warriors, winning two championships in the process. Had he and Thompson not been injured in the 2019 Finals, Durant would probably have had a three-peat.
Durant then left the stability, culture and management of the Bay Area team for the Brooklyn Nets with Kyrie Irving. It’s viewed as hands down the biggest mistake of his career. The Nets’ project was just a total disaster, one that could go down as the worst in NBA history.
The Phoenix Suns present another golden opportunity for Kevin Durant to win another championship. He has repeatedly said that he’s not a leader, but he’s got one of the best in NBA history in Chris Paul. The Suns have size and length, headed by Deandre Ayton.
And then there’s Devin Booker. Durant has for a teammate perhaps the best shooting guard in the league today on offense. KD and Booker will bring all sorts of problems for their opponents to solve, particularly with the “Point God” running the plays.
Kevin Durant will be under a ton of pressure to bring the Phoenix Suns back to the NBA Finals, something he couldn’t do in Brooklyn.
Guess the Lakers players!
