When the Golden State Warriors signed Kevin Durant in 2016, the first two seasons were almost perfect. They won the title in both seasons, and Durant ended up as Finals MVP on both occasions. Then, in the following season, some cracks started developing, like Durant’s beef with Draymond Green.
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During an appearance on The Corp podcast, Durant revealed that their relationship had no problems prior to an on-court fight. He said, “Our relationship was pretty perfect until we had an argument on the court in LA. After that, media members just wanted to get deeper into the story and figure out why that happened.”
This was during a game against the Clippers in November 2018. With scores tied and the clock running down, Green went for the winner himself instead of passing it to their best player, Durant. Green couldn’t even manage a shot and sent the game into overtime where the Warriors ended up losing.
Kevin Durant blames media for making a big deal out of it
“Once you wanna go deeper into that, thousands of media members that are trying to dissect a story, it can get overwhelming at times. Especially for the rest of the guys on the team. I understood why it was a big deal since we were champions.
“But that was the first blow up (when) everybody looked at us as a perfect. That’s how basketball is, that’s how sports is. You get into it, you move on and figure it out.”
Despite that, the Warriors reached the NBA Finals, but they lost Durant and Klay Thompson to injuries. They lost 2-4 then and lost Durant in Free Agency later. After three seasons with the Warriors, Durant left Golden State to sign with Brooklyn. While appearing on ESPN’s First Take, he revealed that this fight was one of the factors that drove him to leave.
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Now in Brooklyn, he is trying to create a new legacy. He already has a solid squad around him and another superstar in Kyrie Irving. They will be expected to be a powerhouse in the Eastern Conference and will certainly challenge for the title.
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