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[Joei]

Whats arbitrary about it? Joining a stacked 73-9 team that just eliminated your ass is a bitch move.

I have to agree with you as well. This would have been the equivalent if Lebron had joined the Lakers or Spurs instead of the Heat, only much worse. You could trade KD for me and there's a good chance the GSW are making the finals. This was such a pansy move.

 

[Kickz]

GSW fits Durant's playstyle much more than OKC. Unselfish fast paced basketball where the open guy gets the ball every time.

Why would anyone want to play with Westbrook just to see him brick 10 shots in a row and turn the ball over 5 straight times to end every single game that he plays in. Durant would never win with him. No one will ever win anything with WB.

You're missing the point, if you want to leave go to Houston then, or San Antonio, etc. Not the stacked 73-9 team that just whooped your ass.

 

[George Claw M.D.]

Whats arbitrary about it? Joining a stacked 73-9 team that just eliminated your ass is a bitch move.

Dude. It's arbitrary by definition. If seedings were different then Thunder might not even have a chance to be eliminated by the Warriors. But because they did meet in the WCF, all of sudden he's barred from joining that team? I guess superstars that are coming up for free agency should avoid making the playoffs that season so that they avoid possibly being eliminated by any team they may choose to join.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Whats arbitrary about it? Joining a stacked 73-9 team that just eliminated your ass is a bitch move.

Not a single lie was detected.

You're missing the point, if you want to leave go to Houston then, or San Antonio, etc. Not the stacked 73-9 team that just whooped your ass.

Or Boston which is where I thought he would go. Woulda given LeBron some real trouble this year and could have solidified a real perennial #1 / #2 in the East.

 

[Gigglepoo]

GSW fits Durant's playstyle much more than OKC. Unselfish fast paced basketball where the open guy gets the ball every time.

Why would anyone want to play with Westbrook just to see him brick 10 shots in a row and turn the ball over 5 straight times to end every single game that he plays in. Durant would never win with him. No one will ever win anything with WB.

Remember when Green complained earlier in the season that Durant held the ball too long on offense? Durant has never been a player who feeds on passing. I'm not sure what you're talking about.

 

[hbkdx12]

The thing that i find disingenuous about the whole KD narrative is the idea that he went there because they were a 73-9 team and that "if you can't beat em, join em"

There were rumblings from 2015 that he wanted to go to GSW before his free agency even hit.

I understand fans being upset with the move because it ruined any kind of parity and competition and whatever else but i can't in a million years act like i would do something different if i were in KD's shoes.

People keep saying he could have went here, there or wherever that wasnt golden state but seem to overlook the idea that anywhere he goes is a massive step down comparatively speaking (with the exception of maybe the spurs, maybe) It also helps majorly that the guy who didn't show up in the finals (Harrison Barnes) is the exact position KD is replacing. It's a 1:1 swap. you don't even have to rework your system the way you probably would need to if he went to the spurs for example

Or Boston which is where I thought he would go. Woulda given LeBron some real trouble this year and could have solidified a real perennial #1 / #2 in the East.

I'd be fine with him going to the east but im so glad this didn't go to boston. Salty ass town. So corny that they booed him when the warriors came to town.

 

[yuraya]

Remember when Green complained earlier in the season that Durant held the ball too long on offense? Durant has never been a player who feeds on passing. I'm not sure what you're talking about.

It doesn't matter what Green said earlier in the season. The team averaging 30 assist per game. It hasn't been done since the show time Lakers. KD has never been more efficient in his career than he is now. He is perfect for a team like that.

Its much better than standing there watching Westbrook play hero ball just to fall flat on his face year after year after year.

 

[beat]

Limited Upside on the Warriors offense, with guest Chris Herring, who just wrote a piece on how the Warrior's O is different from the rest of the league (short version: way more off-ball screens and fewest pick and rolls in the league).

They also said something I've been thinking but was too lazy to write before now: the Cavs are going to use LeBron as a floating defender. They'll nominally have him on the least dangerous Warrior. I personally think the Cavs won't try it till second half of game 2 at the earliest, but once they do it'll be interesting to see what the Dubs do in response.

 

[TheLaughingStock]

You're missing the point, if you want to leave go to Houston then, or San Antonio, etc. Not the stacked 73-9 team that just whooped your ass.

GS may really need a guy like KD. Even with 73 wins during the regular season and competing well in the West, the Cavs had a great chance of being NBA champs with their two best players going off and the overall big 3 healthy. That talent gap changes with KD. The Cavs best hope now is that KD drags GS down back to Earth by dominating the ball and taking possessions away from the best shooters of all time. Otherwise, Kevin Love may have play out of his mind too and Cleveland doesn't seem like a team that's conducive to winning like that.

 

[Yoshimitsu126]

How do people view Artest joining the Lakers in 2009-2010? He also lost to Lakers after game 7 in the year before and then won them the finals in game 7.

I think in the end, if Durant wins, it doesn't really matter. His brand is now a champion no matter the way he got there. Just like Kobe's 3 rings with Shaq and Jame's rings with the Heats.

 

[Shamrock7r]

The thing that i find disingenuous about the whole KD narrative is the idea that he went there because they were a 73-9 team and that "if you can't beat em, join em"

There were rumblings from 2015 that he wanted to go to GSW before his free agency even hit.

I understand fans being upset with the move because it ruined any kind of parity and competition and whatever else but i can't in a million years act like i would do something different if i were in KD's shoes.

People keep saying he could have went here, there or wherever that wasnt golden state but seem to overlook the idea that anywhere he goes is a massive step down comparatively speaking (with the exception of maybe the spurs, maybe) It also helps majorly that the guy who didn't show up in the finals (Harrison Barnes) is the exact position KD is replacing. It's a 1:1 swap. you don't even have to rework your system the way you probably would need to if he went to the spurs for example


I'd be fine with him going to the east but im so glad this didn't go to boston. Salty ass town. So corny that they booed him when the warriors came to town.

From a competitive standpoint it's sad, point blank. These guys won a championship the year prior, went 73-9, made a 3 game comeback and eliminated your ass from the playoffs because of your anti-clutch play, and you crawled to their 3 all stars, begged for forgiveness and a chance to join their club. The decision itself was the anti competitive gene in every capacity.

 

[hbkdx12]

They also said something I've been thinking but was too lazy to write before now: the Cavs are going to use LeBron as a floating defender. They'll nominally have him on the least dangerous Warrior. I personally think the Cavs won't try it till second half of game 2 at the earliest, but once they do it'll be interesting to see what the Dubs do in response.

Wasn't he effectively doing this last year with the way HB was bricking everything? Barnes was a non threat and bron treated him as such

 

[friskykillface]

Max Barnes was the Cavs MVP
Can Durant go ghost like Barnes?

JR lockdown defense time

 

[qcf x2]

I get that people have different reasons for hating on KD. But the stupidest one that many share is that he joined the team that just beat him. Such an arbitrary condition to determine whether his choice was acceptable or not. So if chance had it so that the Thunder and Warriors never even met in the playoffs last year, it would somehow make his decision okay to those people?

It's about as arbitrary as expecting these players to stay loyal to these teams that got a lucky ping pong draw. A ping pong ball that many of these teams earned by being some of the shittiest run organizations. "Congrats! Your prize for being one of the most promising players in the draft is being locked into playing for one of the worst teams in the league! And even when you earn earn your freedom in free agency, people will shit on you if you don't decide to stay with that shitty organization!"

So the Cavaliers and Thunder are "some of the shittiest run organizations" ? If that's the case then what do you call the Warriors prior to 3 seasons ago? If your team can make it to the conference finals then you don't have a "shitty organization," no matter how much one player contributed. Flawed, sure. Shitty? GTFO with that.

GSW fits Durant's playstyle much more than OKC. Unselfish fast paced basketball where the open guy gets the ball every time.

Why would anyone want to play with Westbrook just to see him brick 10 shots in a row and turn the ball over 5 straight times to end every single game that he plays in. Durant would never win with him. No one will ever win anything with WB.

They were up 3-1 on the Warriors in last year's playoffs though? I don't understand your logic, wtf... Durant played like shit in game 6 at home, 1-8 from 3, 10/31 overall, I guess Harrison Barnes had him shook? The man was 1 for 7 in the 4th quarter...at home... with the series in their grasp. Then he goes and joins the Warriors! Get the fuuuuuuck outta here with that "can't win with Westbrook" garbage.

 

[hbkdx12]

From a competitive standpoint it's sad, point blank. These guys won a championship the year prior, went 73-9, made a 3 game comeback and eliminated your ass from the playoffs because of your anti-clutch play, and you crawled to their 3 all stars, begged for forgiveness and a chance to join their club. The decision itself was the anti competitive gene in every capacity.

I'm not denying this. But my point is that in saying that he should have gone somewhere else greatly undermines how much the stars were aligned for him to go to golden state.

1) GS lost the finals. Had they won he wouldn't be there
2) He's a free agent. If this was a situation where GS was trying to brute force their way into trading a bunch of assets for KD then that'd be different but as a free agent and a superstar of his caliber, he can write his own ticket and is entitled to go wherever he wants and like i said, there were rumblings the year prior that he wanted to go there.
3) A large reason as to why GS can even afford KD is because GS's superstars, namely Steph and Klay are/were heavily underpaid.

Ultimately, if im KD i'd have to ask myself, would i rather for people to deride my success now that i got a ring (maybe a few) or would i rather get the Carmelo treatment where i squander my best years with nothing to show for it other than the fact that i stuck with a particular team for a inordinate amount of time. Also, to me, KD should/would easily be the next man up in the league after Lebron but the reason he wasn't is because he was always seen as the robin to Westbrook's batman and in all that time only have 1 finals appearance to show for it.

 

[nullref]

Wasn't he effectively doing this last year with the way HB was bricking everything? Barnes was a non threat and bron treated him as such

Yeah, that's not a new thing – isn't that how LeBron often prefers to play defense? The problem is this year Harrison Barnes has been replaced with Kevin fucking Durant, so I'm not sure there's anybody you can leave open like that. That's not something new the Cavs are going to bust out; that's something the Warriors now have a better answer for.

 

[Peter Ian Staker]

GSW fits Durant's playstyle much more than OKC. Unselfish fast paced basketball where the open guy gets the ball every time.

Why would anyone want to play with Westbrook just to see him brick 10 shots in a row and turn the ball over 5 straight times to end every single game that he plays in. Durant would never win with him. No one will ever win anything with WB.

It doesn't. Golden State played its most beautiful basketball this season when he was injured. Amazing ball movement.

That's not to say that he doesn't make them better but he always feels like the odd man out. Often that beautiful ball movement stops when he gets it in his hands.

Also don't act like this was WB fault. He wasn't alone when they choked that 3-1 lead.

 

[cdyhybrid]

KD did the right thing because anything is better than being in Oklahoma.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Bitch move or not, if he gets a ring for his finger us haters won't cost him any sleep at all.

 

[Shamrock7r]

I'm not denying this. But my point is that in saying that he should have gone somewhere else greatly undermines how much the stars were aligned for him to go to golden state.

1) GS lost the finals. Had they won he wouldn't be there
2) He's a free agent. If this was a situation where GS was trying to brute force their way into trading a bunch of assets for KD then that'd be different but as a free agent and a superstar of his caliber, he can write his own ticket and is entitled to go wherever he wants and like i said, there were rumblings the year prior that he wanted to go there.
3) A large reason as to why GS can even afford KD is because GS's superstars, namely Steph and Klay are/were heavily underpaid.

Ultimately, if im KD i'd have to ask myself, would i rather for people to deride my success now that i got a ring (maybe a few) or would i rather get the Carmelo treatment where i squander my best years with nothing to show for it other than the fact that i stuck with a particular team for a inordinate amount of time. Also, to me, KD should/would easily be the next man up in the league after Lebron but the reason he wasn't is because he was always seen as the robin to Westbrook's batman and in all that time only have 1 finals appearance to show for it.

To get point number 2 out of the way, there is not one person that has said he doesn't have the right to go wherever he wants. That's not the debate. It's totally your right to let New Super Mario Bros play and finish the level for you that you lost 7+ times on. I'm not going to clap my hands and say you made a brave and positive reputation building decision on your abilities as a gamer, lol.

As to point number 3, Nobody is really faulting Golden State for going after KD. The argument is specifically around the legacy and reputation of Kevin Durant as a top player and as a future all time great.

I guarantee you if KD chose another team aside from the Warriors (and Cavs), there wouldn't be that much vitrol from NBA fans outside of OKC. He didn't need to stay at OKC and potentially get the "Carmelo" treatment (even though he and the OKC Thunder have already accomplished more than Carmelo) He went to a team, that won the championship the year prior, went 73-9, made 3 game comeback and eliminated your team thanks to your non clutch play, when you were on the verge of going to the finals. That's, imo, white significantly worse than Lebron going to the Heat (and we remember how much shit he got for that). It's weak. Mentally weak, competitively weak, however you want to frame it. It should be a negative mark on his legacy.
As to point number 1, I wouldn't put it past him to join even after the Warriors won the title. He's clearly established he will crawl to the coattails of the team that beat him in epic fashion already.

 

[Iadien]

Just saw SAS's prediction, congrats to the Cavs!

 

[beat]

Yeah, that's not a new thing – isn't that how LeBron often prefers to play defense? The problem is this year Harrison Barnes has been replaced with Kevin fucking Durant, so I'm not sure there's anybody you can leave open like that. That's not something new the Cavs are going to bust out; that's something the Warriors now have a better answer for.

If I were the Cavs I think I would play small and have LeBron "guard" Zaza. Maybe West, probably Iggy. TT on McGee, I guess.

 

[ryutaro's mama]

Harden did fix his teeth

Ok good.

 

[Peter Ian Staker]

How do people view Artest joining the Lakers in 2009-2010? He also lost to Lakers after game 7 in the year before and then won them the finals in game 7.

I think in the end, if Durant wins, it doesn't really matter. His brand is now a champion no matter the way he got there. Just like Kobe's 3 rings with Shaq and Jame's rings with the Heats.

Was Artest an MVP and a Top 5 player in the league?

Also you know better that to bring Kobe into this conversation. He had to work his way to the top of the Lakers totem pole from the bench. He didn't just join Shaq's Lakers in free agency after his championship bid with another team failed.
Shaq didn't leave Orlando to join a good Lakers squad either. They sucked back then.

 

[Galactic Barret]

Why does it matter where KD went?

Keep it real, you're just mad that the competitive balance is thrown off. Fuck the competitive balance. Dude can play wherever, for whoever he wants. The real bitch move is still complaining about it a year after the fact.

Spoiler

I expected him to go to Boston

It's weak. Mentally weak, competitively weak, however you want to frame it. It should be a negative mark on his legacy.
As to point number 1, I wouldn't put it past him to join even after the Warriors won the title. He's clearly established he will crawl to the coattails of the team that beat him in epic fashion already.

Damn, that petty had me laughing.

 

[nullref]

If I were the Cavs I think I would play small and have LeBron "guard" Zaza. Maybe West, probably Iggy. TT on McGee, I guess.

Who's Kevin Love guarding? Draymond?

 

[Shamrock7r]

Damn, that petty had me laughing.

Ah, no reasonable defense.
Attack the messenger all you want, you know I'm right

 

[WesternHeretic]

Just saw SAS's prediction, congrats to the Cavs!

Madden Curse is going to have a run for its money at this point if SAS is wrong again.

 

[Caddywompus]

If Curry gets injured, Klay gets food poisoning and Green is suspended half the time yet KD puts the remains on his back and wills GS to a championship, is he still going to be viewed as a bitch?

 

[Hyperactivity]

Ok good.

.

 

[Shamrock7r]

If Curry gets injured, Klay gets food poisoning and Green is suspended half the time yet KD puts the remains on his back and wills GS to a championship, is he still going to be viewed as a bitch?

nah that'd be impressive

 

[hbkdx12]

To get point number 2 out of the way, there is not one person that has said he doesn't have the right to go wherever he wants. That's not the debate. It's totally your right to let New Super Mario Bros play and finish the level for you that you lost 7+ times on. I'm not going to clap my hands and say you made a brave and positive reputation building decision on your abilities as a gamer, lol.

As to point number 3, Nobody is really faulting Golden State for going after KD. The argument is specifically around the legacy and reputation of Kevin Durant as a top player and as a future all time great.

People say this but it's a big part of the debate. We can't sit here and say that he's free to go wherever he wants and then get upset when he goes somewhere that doesn't fit the narrative of what we want in our superstars. The same way i can't tell you to go beat New Super Mario Bros and you cheese it by intentionally dying on every level so the game beats it for you and then i get mad saying well you didn't beat it the way i would have or the way i wanted you to when the game is coded to have that be a viable playstyle.

I guarantee you if KD chose another team aside from the Warriors (and Cavs), there wouldn't be that much vitrol from NBA fans outside of OKC. He didn't need to stay at OKC and potentially get the "Carmelo" treatment (even though he and the OKC Thunder have already accomplished more than Carmelo) He went to a team, that won the championship the year prior, went 73-9, made 3 game comeback and eliminated your team thanks to your non clutch play, when you were on the verge of going to the finals. That's, imo, white significantly worse than Lebron going to the Heat (and we remember how much shit he got for that). It's weak. Mentally weak, competitively weak, however you want to frame it. It should be a negative mark on his legacy.
As to point number 1, I wouldn't put it past him to join even after the Warriors won the title. He's clearly established he will crawl to the coattails of the team that beat him in epic fashion already.

Of course they wouldn't because he went and joined a team that was already great without him. I'm not arguing to say that it's not weak or noncompetitive or whatever else you want to call it. I understand it---from a fans perspective. But the idea that KD was realistically suppose to choose any other team that would have been a massive downgrade just so he could get kudos from fans seems crazy. When Lebron went to Miami people keep saying it's different because the team wasn't that great before he got there and he attracted talent to make the move with him (Bosh) but being that Lebron could go anywhere and has the power to attract talent then why not go to, i don't know--Milwaukee? Why not go to the Bucks and strengthen his legacy building up a trash team? You know why, because at that point in his life, Lebron knew that his best chance at winning a ring was to go to miami. He did was he felt was best for his career. Period. KD did the same thing. He made the best choice for his career. Like do we think that there are superstars in the east that wouldn't go play with Lebron in cleveland if everything lined up as seamlessly as it did with KD going to GS?

 

[Spy]

To go to the team who just eliminated you in the playoffs when you were up 3-1 who also happens to have had the greatest NBA regular season record of 73-9 is the biggest punk move I've ever seen.

 

[Shamrock7r]

People say this but it's a big part of the debate. We can't sit here and say that he's free to go wherever he wants and then get upset when he goes somewhere that doesn't fit the narrative of what we want in our superstars. The same way i can't tell you to go beat New Super Mario Bros and you cheese it by intentionally dying on every level so the game beats it for you and then i get mad saying well you didn't beat it the way i would have or the way i wanted you to when the game is coded to have that be a viable playstyle.

Uh, yes we can. There is no contradiction there. That's how we critique and judge most things in life. If someone makes the argument of "Hey now guys Nintendo put the level beating mechanism in the game so it's within his right to play it that way " I can say "True but he sucks at the game".

Of course they wouldn't because he went and joined a team that was already great without him. I'm not arguing to say that it's not weak or noncompetitive or whatever else you want to call it. I understand it---from a fans perspective. But the idea that KD was realistically suppose to choose any other team that would have been a massive downgrade just so he could get kudos from fans seems crazy.

It's not really an argument about fans, at least usually. The NBA, moreso than any other major team sport imo, puts a lot of stock in the legacy and overall placement of it's superstars. There isn't another major team sport, I think, where there are more arguments about the top 10, 20, 50 players of all time. From that point of view, I'd say this will be a pretty big negative mark on a Durant in those future discussions. His future as a hall of famer was never in question, so these discussions go beyond that.

When Lebron went to Miami people keep saying it's different because the team wasn't that great before he got there and he attracted talent to make the move with him (Bosh) but being that Lebron could go anywhere and has the power to attract talent then why not go to, i don't know--Milwaukee? Why not go to the Bucks and strengthen his legacy building up a trash team? You know why, because at that point in his life, Lebron knew that his best chance at winning a ring was to go to miami. He did was he felt was best for his career. Period. KD did the same thing. He made the best choice for his career. Like do we think that there are superstars in the east that wouldn't go play with Lebron in cleveland if everything lined up as seamlessly as it did with KD going to GS?

Lebron was criticized a hell of a lot more than Durant for his decision, and it's nowhere near the same level in terms of circumstances. As to the bolded, part of the reason Lebron left Cleveland was that he couldn't attract talent to his teams at that time.

 

[Greatest Ever]

You guys should listen to Kevin Durant on Bill Simmons' podcast.

 

[cdyhybrid]

You guys should listen to Kevin Durant on Bill Simmons' podcast.

I'm good.

 

[Hyperactivity]

https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/6e2v1w/a_rundown_of_all_the_curses_regarding_the_nba/

Stephen A. Smith curse: SAS is 0-6 in predicting the winner of the Finals (Source). He predicted the Warriors will win in 7 this year (Source).

San Antonio Spurs Curse: Every Western team that eliminated San Antonio since 2008 lost in the very next round (Source).

Alabama Curse: LeBron James has never won a Championship if Alabama doesn't win the National Championship that year (Source).

Toaster curse: The Warriors are now 27-0 with Klay Thompson since he signed u/RDollaz 's toaster (Source). This is a curse that the Cavs have to overcome.

Kevin Love has never lost a playoff series curse: How could I forget this one?
Am I missing any? What curse do you think will be brouken?

LeBron leads league in 2 pt field goal curseq
The fact that LeBron has a pattern of LLWWLLW suggesting a W this time around

LeBron James has never won a title when the Washington Wizards make the playoffs.

James Jones has never been swept in a playoff series.

Relevant to the toaster curse/blessing.

Since 2014 every championship team has had an Australian player

Kyrie Irving is the closest thing

Also, we have yet to know if lil B actually had the power to remove his based God curse, or if he can just inflict a terrible curse that too powerful to rescind

God, how much longer till the finals start...

 

[beat]

Who's Kevin Love guarding? Draymond?

Sounds bad when you put it that way! But if LeBron's available as a free safety defender, maybe that could still work.

 

[neptunes]

Why does it matter where KD went?

Keep it real, you're just mad that the competitive balance is thrown off. Fuck the competitive balance. Dude can play wherever, for whoever he wants. The real bitch move is still complaining about it a year after the fact.

Fans can hold grudges for a long time, people still hold "The Decision" against 'Bron to this very day

 

[Hydrogen Bluebird]

To go to the team who just eliminated you in the playoffs when you were up 3-1 who also happens to have had the greatest NBA regular season record of 73-9 is the biggest punk move I've ever seen.

I share the same opinion. Hope the Cavs pull off an upset.

 

[BlackNMild2k1]

1. Every team San Antonio has been beaten by since 2008 has lost in the next round. Since 2002, none of those teams have won the championship

2. Stephen A. Smith has predicted the winner of the finals wrong 11 straight times. He just said GSW in 7.

https://streamable.com/xcieh

RIP Dubs. Doubt they beat a double SAS curse

Well, these Warriors been defying all odds for a few seasons now.

SAS curse 1... has that team ever swept the Spurs?

SAS curse 2... well, he did originally pick Cavs.a few weeks/months ago, maybe that helps offset things.

I mean, no one thought the Warriors of last year, who hadn't lost 3 games in a row all season... would lose a 3-1 lead in the finals.
Maybe they can use the reverse of that this year to defy the will of the Double SAS Curse.

 

[Kickz]

How do people view Artest joining the Lakers in 2009-2010? He also lost to Lakers after game 7 in the year before and then won them the finals in game 7.

Comparing an NBA MVP with Artest

 

[GalacticToast]

Truly the hardest road

 

[Pupperbabysassy]

The thing that i find disingenuous about the whole KD narrative is the idea that he went there because they were a 73-9 team and that "if you can't beat em, join em"

There were rumblings from 2015 that he wanted to go to GSW before his free agency even hit.

I understand fans being upset with the move because it ruined any kind of parity and competition and whatever else but i can't in a million years act like i would do something different if i were in KD's shoes.

People keep saying he could have went here, there or wherever that wasnt golden state but seem to overlook the idea that anywhere he goes is a massive step down comparatively speaking (with the exception of maybe the spurs, maybe) It also helps majorly that the guy who didn't show up in the finals (Harrison Barnes) is the exact position KD is replacing. It's a 1:1 swap. you don't even have to rework your system the way you probably would need to if he went to the spurs for example


I'd be fine with him going to the east but im so glad this didn't go to boston. Salty ass town. So corny that they booed him when the warriors came to town.

I live in the Bay Area. KNBR was reporting that KD wanted to play here right after the Warriors won the title. A full year before he joined the team.

 

[Pupperbabysassy]

Truly the hardest road

Last time I checked. Durant isn't playing for the Heat or the Lakers.

 

[GalacticToast]

Last time I checked. Durant isn't playing for the Heat or the Lakers.

He's also not being competitive and "going" at the people. Feel free to continue ignoring that though.

 

[maxxpower]

Am I the only one that sees Curry as the only superstar in GS (before KD move). While Green and Klay are good players, I never considered GS a stacked team. They were just a team that played good basketball, emphasis on team.

 

[hbkdx12]

Uh, yes we can. There is no contradiction there. That's how we critique and judge most things in life. If someone makes the argument of "Hey now guys Nintendo put the level beating mechanism in the game so it's within his right to play it that way " I can say "True but he sucks at the game".

I imagine you'd be saying "he sucks at the game" because you know there's a better way to play the game. So as a fan, the better way would have been for KD to go to any other team to help preserve the competition but for KD, what would have been the better career move had he not gone to golden state?

It's not really an argument about fans, at least usually. The NBA, moreso than any other major team sport imo, puts a lot of stock in the legacy and overall placement of it's superstars. There isn't another major team sport, I think, where there are more arguments about the top 10, 20, 50 players of all time. From that point of view, I'd say this will be a pretty big negative mark on a Durant in those future discussions. His future as a hall of famer was never in question, so these discussions go beyond that.

I agree with the importance of legacy in the league however, rings are the ultimate deciding factor and tool of looking at someone's legacy favorably. If KD stays with GS and ends up fighting for a 4th or 5th ring, no one's gonna be like "Hey guys, remember when KD went to this overpowered team like 7 years ago!?" I really don't think people are going to hold on to this level of vitriol if he stays with golden state for multiple years and wins multiple rings.

Lebron was criticized a hell of a lot more than Durant for his decision, and it's nowhere near the same level in terms of circumstances. As to the bolded, part of the reason Lebron left Cleveland was that he couldn't attract talent to his teams at that time.

Surely, at the time, Lebron couldn't attract talent because he played for a small market and had no rings which is why he went to miami with wade and a coaching staff that already had a championship win which made for an easy sell for Bosh to come join. I'm sure if Lebron told Bosh he was going to Milwaukee and he wanted him to come with him, bosh would have looked at him like he was crazy. I'm not saying the circumstances were the same. I'm saying the driving catalyst for their decision was the same. They both put themselves in the best situation for success because by comparison, going anywhere else wasn't worth it.

All i can really say is that i see it from both sides. I see why fans hate the move and abhor it but at the same time i completely see why KD did what he did given that any other option would have been far more inferior.

 

[Jarate]

Klay Thompson is a really good defender and one of the best shooters in the league

Draymond Green might win DPOTY while having a pretty good offensive game.

Both of them are top 20 players. In this NBA that's saying something. Thompson is probably a top 10 player imo

 

[Tommy DJ]

Am I the only one that sees Curry as the only superstar in GS (before KD move). While Green and Klay are good players, I never considered GS a stacked team. They were just a team that played good basketball, emphasis on team.

Are you insane? We've got:
- Recent 2x time MVP and all star (Curry)
- DPOY this year (Green)
- 2x players who are either in the All-Star starting lineup or All-Star reserves (Klay, Green)

They're the most stacked team on the league. Only now that they've got Durant, who was a recent scoring champion and all star.