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Kevin Durant left the Golden State Warriors’ well-established championship culture to team up with Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn. It turns out he completely took for granted what he had in Golden State.
KD explained in an interview that part of the reason he requested a trade from Brooklyn was to play on a stable team with a championship culture. He had significant doubts that the Nets could accomplish that after spending the last three seasons with the franchise.
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith promptly called out Durant’s reasoning for wanting to run away from the Nets:
“The Brooklyn Nets made it very, very clear before you arrived that this was going to be your franchise. You wanted us to take Kyrie, we’ll take Kyrie, you want us to bring James Harden, we’ll bring James Harden, you wanted Steve Nash as coach, fine. It’s your team!
“In the end, this was your spot, so for you wanting to leave and you're talking about the doubts, look at the things he said. ‘People were not being held accountable.’ Well, Kevin Durant, why the hell didn’t you hold them accountable? It’s your team!”
Kevin Durant refused to hold Kyrie Irving accountable for his many off-court issues as a member of the Nets. He had little to say when Irving voluntarily missed games last season due to his refusal to take the COVID-19 vaccine.
Once things got tough, Durant immediately looked for an exit. He wants to be a leader, but doesn't want the responsibilities that come with being the number one option.
Stephen A. Smith compares Kevin Durant’s leadership to that of LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo
Kevin Durant could have taken a page out of LeBron James’ book, according to Stephen A. Smith:
“LeBron James has gotten a lot of credit and a lot of blame over the years. Why? Because it’s his team. And you know somebody is gonna ask him what he feels and he’s gonna provide input. That’s gonna have some muscle, some cachet attached to it. You think somebody is getting on Giannis’ nerves and they are going to stay in Milwaukee?"
Most of the time, the success or failure of LeBron James led teams were placed on his shoulder. Whether it is fair or not is irrelevant. He never runs away from the responsibility of being the franchise player. You can't say the same about Durant:
“When you’re that dude, de facto, literally, indirectly, it’s your spot! So for me, when he’s talking about [not liking] how things were, well you have enough cachet and influence to change it."
"When you’re that dude and you don’t like the way things are, you got some influence to change it.”
Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets have agreed to move their partnership forward after a tumultuous summer. KD may not have the same leeway as before, but he certainly has the clout to dictate how the franchise operates. If he plays to the best of his abilities, he can single-handidly will the team to an NBA championship.
The Nets open their season against the New Orleans Pelicans on October 19.
Guess the Lakers players!
