Kevin Durant and one of LeBron James’ friends had a testy back-and-forth on X on Friday. “Cuffs The Legend” opened the exchange by saying his mental health took the most hit when KD joined the stacked Golden State Warriors. KD responded to the social media influencer and those who criticized him by calling them “weak men.”James’ friend refused to quit, blasting the Houston Rockets forward for responding to “assorted nerds,” who never played basketball. Durant did not hold back when he replied.“Sorry, Bums annoy me….your mental health is attached to LeBron James though, which is insane because you don’t hoop against him or nothing, your name is just cuffs…hahaha s**t be wild in 2025.”“Cuffs The Legend” got off the last shot by accusing Kevin Durant of responding to a James fan at “2am.” KD supposedly dared the critic to “Tell your King to guard me 1 on 1.”73-9 and THEY LIED @CuffsTheLegendLINK@KDTrey5 random message from KD to lil ole Cuffington at 2am on a random NBA Tuesday.. “Tell your King to guard me 1 on 1” I see you are still fixated with that man.. i still got all the voice notes scrap 😂😂 #iKnowIndicaWhenISeeItDurant’s decision to leave the OKC Thunder for the Warriors in the summer of 2016 is still causing ripples. Most of his critics ripped him for joining a team that the Thunder lost to. Durant shifted the balance of power in the NBA by teaming up with Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala and Draymond Green.With Durant joining the Dubs, LeBron James did not have a chance of leading the Cleveland Cavaliers against the stacked team. James went 1-for-8 in two NBA Finals appearances against the Warriors with Durant on the roster.LeBron James left Cleveland after back-to-back losses to Kevin Durant in NBA FinalsIn LeBron James’ second NBA Finals against Kevin Durant and the Warriors, the four-time MVP’s Cleveland Cavaliers lost in four games. James left Cleveland to play for the LA Lakers in the summer of 2018. Two seasons after going to Hollywood, James would win the championship again alongside Anthony Davis.Since the “Bubble” championship, James has had limited success in the playoffs. The Lakers lost in the first round to the Phoenix Suns in 2021 before a disastrous 2021-22 campaign forced them out of playoff contention.Behind James and Davis, the Lakers regrouped to reach the Western Conference finals in 2023, but the Denver Nuggets swept them. They gained a rematch with the Nuggets in 2024, a series that ended in five games. Last year, as the higher-seeded team, James’ Lakers, now with Luka Doncic in tow, lost 4-1 to the Minnesota Timberwolves.The Lakers retooled in the offseason, but so did the Houston Rockets, who now have Kevin Durant on the roster. Depending on how games will play out, James’ path to a championship could see him face Durant again.