When Kevin Durant started playing in the NBA in 2007, the Oklahoma City Thunder became his home. He, in turn, became the heart and soul of the franchise for nine seasons straight. Championship-winning players like Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka also joined him. However, things weren’t as sunny when another veteran— a 5x NBA champ graced the Thunder locker room in 2012; it looks like this legend has some regrets with Kevin Durant & Co. of OKC Thunder.

Kobe Bryant’s Los Angeles Lakers teammate Derek Fisher joined the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2012. The star-studded team had players like Russell Westbrook, Nick Collison, and Perry Jones. The team was meant to win the championship. They reached the finals but lost to the mighty Miami Heat of LeBron James and Dwayne Wade. Oddly enough, Derek Fisher who came in as 5x champ wished things were different at Oklahoma. He wishes he had done things differently there.

Speaking on Podcast P with Paul George, Kevin Durant’s ex-teammate or shall we say Kobe Bryant’s ex-teammate, opened up about his experiences with OKC. “I was nervous about disrupting the natural leadership of the locker room at that point. Even though I was a veteran leader coming in,” Fisher stated. “I had only been there for two months. It was more important that Kevin Durant and Russell and Serge Ibaka, Nick Collison, Kendrick Perkins. Like that was their locker room that I had come to be a part of.”

He added: “And so I didn’t feel like I wanted to try to grab control of the locker room in a sense and try to say, no, this is what we should be doing. Most guys, you have to learn it through your own experiences. But that was one of the things looking back on.” Well, coming with the experience of playing with one of the greatest (if not the greatest) players in the NBA’s history and winning, I repeat, 5 championships, Derek Fisher could’ve added so much value to the Thunder‘s young talent.

Thus regretting, he says: “I wish I would have spoken up a little bit more and just made sure that as that series went on, certain things were taking place. I would have asserted a little bit more leadership to make sure that they understood how hard it is to win an NBA championship.” 

Well, sadly during his stint in Oklahoma, Kevin Durant didn’t win a championship with the team, and yes, maybe Derek Fisher’s tips could’ve worked for the team back then. But then, KD did move to the Golden State Warriors and won two titles; back-to-back. And now that we are talking about Durant, his present team, the Phoenix Suns, are having a series of drama in the locker room.

The removal of 2 players has heated Kevin Durant’s Suns locker room

NBA insider Chris Haynes revealed a major story about Kevin Durant’s teammates Bradley Beal and Jusuf Nurkic. Reports say the two players have been removed from the start lineup starting Monday. The team is to play against the Philadelphia 76ers, with Mason Plumlee and Ryan Dunn taking their place.

“There is also tension in that locker room. I’m told certain players are unsure of their roles and frustrated with how they’re being used. The coaching staff, they’re still trying to figure things out. So this situation will be something to monitor moving forward,” Haynes reported.

The Phoenix Suns are in a spiral, dropping four straight, 7 of their last 8, and a shocking 6-16 in 22 games. Even with Kevin Durant back (once their winning charm), they’re 3-7 (in the last 10 games). The roster’s nearly healthy—except Royce O’Neal—but the vibes? Not so much. Thus a shakeup’s brewing, starting Monday night. Yet, the mysterious question is why the team is benching Beal and Nurkic.

Therefore, it feels like Kevin Durant and locker room drama go hand-in-hand. Previously, it was Derek Fisher who felt somewhat out of spot in OKC Thunder. He is now expressing his regrets with KD and Co. Meanwhile, the Suns are trapped in a new tension, who knows what’s next?