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Kevin Durant's time with the Golden State Warriors was controversial. Before the former MVP decided to join the team, he and the OKC Thunder gave up a 3-1 lead to the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals. Durant's decision to then join the team he and the Thunder were ahead of in the playoff series raised eyebrows.
Many questioned whether it was fair for the 73-9 Warriors to add a top-tier talent like Durant. As it turned out, the pairing wouldn't last. While Kevin Durant and the Warriors won two titles together, things ended abruptly after a heated verbal spat between him and Draymond Green.
The two have since mended fences and made it clear that it was more the Warriors organization's reaction to the situation than it was the argument itself. Despite that, and both players indicating that they have love for one another, many believe there's lingering animosity between the two.
On Draymond Green's podcast, Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas weighed in on the situation. The way he sees things, it was Durant who saved the Warriors' legacy.
"Before Kevin Durant arrived in Golden State, y'all were on the verge of being remembered as the team that went 73-9 and lost to a Cleveland Cavalier team in the finals," he said.
"You up three to one, and probably one of the biggest collapse in NBA Finals history. Kevin Durant comes that summer and really saves y'all basketball legacy."
"If Kevin Durant don't come that summer ... all of your legacies are different" - Isiah Thomas
When Durant joined the Golden State Warriors, the team was fresh off a 73-9 season, leading many to dub the Warriors as the best team of all time.
Despite that, the key difference between them and the 72-10 Chicago Bulls team of the '90s was that the Bulls team won an NBA title. At the time, the phrase around Chicago surrounding the season was: "It don't mean a thing without the ring."
After the Warriors came up short by blowing a 3-1 lead to the Cleveland Cavaliers, they then won back-to-back titles with Kevin Durant. The feat cemented the Warriors as a dynasty, and despite Durant's departure for the 2020-21 season, the reputation of the Warriors has remained strong.
The way Isiah Thomas sees things, had Durant not joined the team and helped them win back-to-back titles after their loss to the Cavaliers, everything would be different. He explained:
"You win two championships after that. The Golden State Warriors' dynasty that you're going to go into the Hall of Fame on, and everything else, it is cemented. Because if Durant don't come that summer and you guys are remembered as the 73 and nine team, all of your legacies are different."
While things may have ended abruptly, and poorly, Thomas' comments add some interesting discourse around the team's split.
Guess the Lakers players!
