Now that Kevin Durant has been introduced as a Golden State Warrior, everyone can begin to settle into the power shift that has occurred in the NBA. It’s well documented his departure from the Oklahoma City Thunder (OKC) is receiving a great amount of commentary from sports pundits, professional athletes from several sports and across the social media sphere.
Criticism was quick to come once Durant broke the news via the Players Tribune. Stephen A. Smith of ESPN has been quoted to say, “it’s been the weakest move he’s ever seen by a superstar.” Charles Barkley has added his sentiments, which included him saying Durant “got on the gravy train of a terrific Warriors team.”
But to every story there is a flipside. A side that introduces that there is nothing more than a career theory at work in the case of KD35. Simply put, if an individual has the ability to leave a company (OKC) to work with better employees (GSW: Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green) and increase the probability of achieving career success, should they deny that opportunity? It’s often said to “work smarter, not harder.” Durant is doing exactly that and implementing that phrase into his long-term plan. Yet, many folks are up in arms about his relocation to the Bay area, as if he did something morally wrong.
There is clearly an unwritten rule which some live by whereas star players should gut it out with their original team (or the team they have the most skin in the game with) and bring success to that team because that’s the way things “should be done.” But why should a player have to endure years of agony when the current recipe has failed in prior years. Whether it was James Harden‘s departure or the tug and pull that exists with Russell Westbrook and his play, things may have not been in the cards for Durant as far as OKC went. His decision merely reflects what he wants to do his prime versus being an elder statesmen in the league that hopes to sign with a championship contender as his career winds down. Some call his move weak, others can call it aggressive. It just depends on the lens that is being used in observing his decision.
Looking at things by standing in the size 17 shoes of Durant, let’s not front as if others have not ring-hunted by looking for another squad to play on. Outside of the obvious big 3 that was formed with Miami Heat (Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh), many have been a part of hopping onto a winning team to increase their chances of winning a title. Barkley was definitely in search of a ring when he left the Philadelphia 76ers to go play in Arizona for the Phoenix Suns after 8 seasons in the city of brotherly love. And when the likelihood of championship in the Grand Canyon state became too low for comfort, he packed his bags in 1996 to go play with Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler and the Houston Rockets who were just coming off of their back-to-back championship years (1994 and 1995). Was Barkley under a defamatory microscope then? Did he receive widespread scrutiny? Without even thinking, any basketball fan can answer those questions with a swift “No.”
Gary Payton and Karl Malone linked up with Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers following their third consecutive title (2001, 2002, 2003) to form a roster that included four hall-of-famers. Were they shamed for forming a super team? No. Despite combining forces, there was a level of sympathy for Payton and Malone as many knew they were over the hill and were shells of the player they once used to be.
Even after the Lakers failed to beat the Pistons in the 2004 NBA finals, Payton proceeded to take his talents to South Beach in 2005 where he teamed up with Shaquille O’Neal and Dwyane Wade in pursuit of his first ring. Luckily for him, his quest for a championship ended in 2006 after the Miami Heat beat the Dallas Mavericks. But although he captured a ring, Payton was years past his prime, was not “the man” on his team, and did not deliver a celebratory parade to city of Seattle, as he spent the bulk of his career as a Supersonic. Yet, he did not receive villainous treatment or was categorized as a scapegoat.
There was little to no public outcry when the Celtics paired Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen with Paul Pierce, which immediately yielded a championship the following season. The trades that brought the two to Bean Town did not cause fans to get their panties in a bunch. Instead, there was a charitable-like notion of “let these guys get together and get a crack at a championship run.” After all, that feeling came from the three players sticking through years of disappointment by playing their prime years for the teams that brought them such heartache (Pierce for the Celtics, Garnett for the Timberwolves, and Allen for the Bucks and Supersonics). As a result, this curbed all discussions of collusion or cheating to get a title for the three of them.
So according to those standards and scenarios above, it’s okay to ring-hunt and/or form a super team. It just has to be when the players are washed up, no longer dominating the hardwood, or are clearly past their prime. Ohhh, so making power moves can only be done once the talent well is dry. Sounds like a twisted double-standard that is circulating in the basketball realm during this age of free agency, with emphasis on the word “free.” Meaning free to select any team of his choice, as that is his own right to exploit as a professional athlete. If that was not the case, it would be called “conditioned free agency.” Nonetheless, while standing in the face of that standard, Durant should be applauded for not giving a you-know-what about what others think of him, the kind of criticism he knew he’d receive, and how this decision could impact his basketball reputation.
Either way the cookie crumbles, there are bound to be winners and losers when a player signs on the dotted line of a contract. Durant’s decision will only come across as unfair to the fans and teams that he opted not to be a part of. His choice exposes the level of fanatical hypocrisy that exists, because all thoughts of fairness and maintaining some kind of competitive integrity would be thrown out of the window for the fan bases of the Los Angeles Clippers, San Antonio Spurs or any other fully loaded team should he have signed with them.
At the end of the day, Durant still has to put the work in and actually win the NBA Championship. So what the Warriors are stacked with a historic roster that resembles an Olympic team and can shoot better than a Navy Seal sniper. Although the Heat had their super team from 2010 to 2014, they only won two out of the four times they appeared in the NBA Finals. Proving that it’s one thing to for Durant to join an incredible team, but it a completely different animal to go out and win the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy.
The reality is that we are living in new day and age of the NBA. These are not the glory days of hoops where players were bound to their teams out of a rivalry, individual achievement, or competitive spirit. There is a willingness to be great alongside other greats and to not place the entire weight of a championship run on one set of shoulders alone. This was illustrated by Lebron James with his decision to play for the Miami Heat and the big 3, while doing so again four seasons later by forming a new big 3 in his return to the Cleveland Cavaliers (LBJ, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love). Chris Paul saw an opportunity in la la land with Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan, and voila, Lob City was born. Now it is Durant’s turn to seize the opportunity of doing what he feels is the best fit for him and his career.
