<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kevin Durant: "That call to Oklahoma City was the hardest thing I’ve had to do in my life. Tears were shed…I trusted my gut."</p>— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) <a href="https://twitter.com/sam_amick/status/751155939940589568">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Durant says this is "the hardest road," not the easiest to a championship.</p>— Royce Young (@royceyoung) <a href="https://twitter.com/royceyoung/status/751156199165267968">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kevin Durant: "It's an unpopular decision but I can live with it."</p>— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) <a href="https://twitter.com/anthonyVslater/status/751155965714653184">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">"We live in super hero comic book word where you are a super hero or a villain," - Durant said. <a href="https://t.co/E3SH8tIzjQ">https://t.co/E3SH8tIzjQ</a></p>— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpearsESPN) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarcJSpearsESPN/status/751156526857859072">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kevin Durant in response to criticism he's shortcutting/cheating to get a title: "Nothing in this league is easy. There are no shortcuts."</p>— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) <a href="https://twitter.com/Rachel__Nichols/status/751156244837199872">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">"(Klay Thompson) text me. I didn't know he had a phone," - Kevin Durant. <a href="https://t.co/jTHF9DTVmU">https://t.co/jTHF9DTVmU</a></p>— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpearsESPN) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarcJSpearsESPN/status/751157166044614656">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">KD says he talked to W’Brook: “obviously, it’s tough…I’m sure he wasn’t happy about the decision, but he respected it as my friend."</p>— David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) <a href="https://twitter.com/daldridgetnt/status/751157851020603392">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Right... exactly how I feel. I'm not a KD hater, or mad at him, or the Warriors, or the league. It's not the "NBA's fault" really. You can't control everything, and they've set up a system that has been VERY VERY VERY profitable for the NBA. It just is what it is. The only difference I'd say between you and me, is I'll still have very high interest in the NBA. This was a fine move for the NBA as a whole. Casual fans watch more when there are "super" teams. Diehard fans are happy to watch and "hate" if you will. I'm not going to watch and "hate". I'm not going to watch and "care" all that much about the Warriors, just as I didn't last year. I DID watch them on TNT, I did REALLY enjoy their exciting games nationally televised. And I did watch them as the playoffs went on and they were the only option. But as a person that has had league pass for 5+ years, I still principally watch the Rockets, and secondarily watch a whole random slew of other players and teams that interest me. And I'll continue to enjoy my NBA fandom that way. I'll be happy if the Warriors lose, because I do think they've taken the "easy" way, but it is what it is. On the whole, any year the Rockets don't win is a crappy year for me!
When they hooked up Wilt was the MVP of the league, Baylor finished 3rd, and West made the 2nd All-NBA team in the prior season. And this was from a time when players voted on it. They played together from 69-72. In 69 Wilt avg 24/21/5, Baylor avg 25/11/5 and West avg 26/4/7. Wilt finished 3rd and 4th in MVP voting in two of those seasons and West finished 2nd three times. It was a superteam. We don't need to make it seem like they weren't all still amongst the best in the game or in some type of decline.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">By multiple outlets, this is not what happened and he was influenced significantly by his advisers. <a href="https://t.co/Hdmz2oDuqE">https://t.co/Hdmz2oDuqE</a></p>— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) <a href="https://twitter.com/HPbasketball/status/751158553885286400">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
I took the hard road man! I've never been here before, never played here before! How do I trust Stephen Curry, who I "just met"?! _____________________ <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Durant: "I plan on being here. I don't want to go through that again."</p>— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) <a href="https://twitter.com/sam_amick/status/751159904094662656">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The "I'm sure we'll talk again" part of KD's answer on Westbrook gives a pretty good indication how RW probably took this decision.</p>— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) <a href="https://twitter.com/anthonyVslater/status/751159743318728704">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Even though he signed a 1+1 contract, Kevin Durant said he's committed to staying with the Warriors."I don't want to go through this again."</p>— Rusty Simmons (@Rusty_SFChron) <a href="https://twitter.com/Rusty_SFChron/status/751160102229389313">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
From the entire statement, I'm pretty sure by "hardest road," he meant that the easiest thing, as a person, to do would be stay put--there would be a lot less friction, he wouldn't have to acclimate to new teammates, he wouldn't have to change his life, etc. Pretty sure Royce Young's interpretation that he meant it's the hardest road to a championship is wrong. Neither Golden State nor Oklahoma Thunder would have been the hardest road to a title--Philadelphia would have. So that interpretation is just dumb.
Well either they weren't that super or their competition was equally super, since they didn't even win a title until 4 years later...3 different teams won a title before this so-called superteam did, so it's not even like they were just losing to the one other superteam.
Then he wasn't responding to the question that was asked. I listened to it. They asked him about taking the easy way out to get a chip. He mentioned ya still have 82 games and then went into the "I don't know anyone" angle.
You're right that the NBA will be fine from an overall viewership perspective, but next year was shaping up to be an all-timer from a true competition perspective. Cavs, Warriors, Spurs, Thunder...Any one of those teams could have been seen as the frontrunner. Now, the Thunder are about as relevant as the Rockets, and the Warriors should win the title with ease.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The <a href="https://twitter.com/warriors">@warriors</a> have a locker ready to go for <a href="https://twitter.com/KDTrey5">@KDTrey5</a> <a href="https://t.co/QuQ6xCYGuH">pic.twitter.com/QuQ6xCYGuH</a></p>— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) <a href="https://twitter.com/darrenrovell/status/751162364234440704">July 7, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
