The Kevin Durant Conundrum...

[num123]

Not reading all of that, Durant is good in my eyes.

 

[RennisDeynolds]

Kevin is not a leader. Plain and simple. We need to stop expecting him to be one. He's the best follower in all of history

 

[murksiderock]

I agree…but idk if he is top 15 all time tho. He just ain’t made the winking impact like you would think a person of his caliber would make a more resounding impact.

He just is not a leader plain and simple..and it isn’t proven he makes his teammates better. He is great when you plug him into an already great system with great chemistry. He would have been perfect for the spurs dynasty or even that Toronto team that won with Kahwi. He just isn’t a bus driver. This Suns team should be good for him since he has less pressure.

People forget that sports are a mental game as well. If you only look at stats you are missing the whole picture (Westbrook/ Draymond and Jimmy)..

Top 10-15 all time?

Do nikkas even have him above Kawhi?

I think Top 15 is a solid placement for him. I think anyone who claims he's already Top 10 is tripping, though...

He's above Kawhi for sure...

 

[SchoolboyC]

KD was not competing with Milwaukee or Boston with Spencer Dinwiddie & Dorian Finney-Smith as his #2 and #3, let’s stop the bullshyt.

Not sure what y’all want from KD at this point, go to Charlotte and carry them to a title? He’s a 1st ballot ATG, one of the best players of his generation. If he’s an underachiever who exactly was the standard we’re holding him to?

 

[IIVI]

Durant took healthy Giannis, Middleton and Jrue to the limit basically by himself for 5 games.

I remember that his team left so many points out there that dude was practically playing against two teams - and now we're familiar with how good that Bucks team is.

That was maybe some of the best basketball I've seen any one person play. Dude was carrying.

 

[kdslittlebro]

I agree with some of this thread but not all of it. First off, ain't no way Westbrook is top-50. His career post-KD drops him a lot, especially when you look at those two years with Paul George. He's been brutal in the playoffs since 2016, no two ways around it. OKC's first round losses with Paul George in 2018 and 2019 fall squarely on Russ, in my book. If he was really that guy, no reason they lose to a Utah team led by a rookie Donovan Mitchell in 2018 and we all know how bad Dame torched him in 2019.

As far as KD, he's a bus driver when you give him the fastest vehicle and he doesn't have to do any maintenance. But, if he needs to do an oil change or fix a flat, it's not gonna end well. I agree he isn't a foxhole guy. When the going gets tough, he's gonna let it burn instead of grabbing a fire extinguisher. His lack of leadership is unlike any other player of his caliber.

Does anyone think Kobe would have let Draymond talk to him like that, especially out on the court? Kyrie wasn't doing all those antics when he was with LeBron in Cleveland. Would MJ have let Westbrook be as reckless as he was during his OKC tenure? He's very similar to Kawhi in that, if all he's asked to do is ball, you'll be fine. But, if you ask him to set the culture of a place, there's gonna be issues.

In Phoenix, they already have two culture setters in Paul and Booker. It should be fine and it they win it all, it won't surprise me.

I give him a pass on the injury stuff because the majority of it is after his Achilles tear. I won't downplay the severity of that. Prior to the tear, he'd played most of his team's games besides 2014-15.

It doesn't get brought up often, but besides his Golden State years, he's been a little erratic in the postseason.

One of the fairer takes I’ve seen

 

[In The Zone '98]

Durant took healthy Giannis, Middleton and Jrue to the limit basically by himself for 5 games.

I remember that his team left so many points out there that dude was practically playing against two teams.

That was maybe some of the best basketball I've seen any one person play.

To that point, America is too obsessed with underdog overcoming the odds narratives.

 

[Ohene]

not sure i can put him top 15

Giannis will surpass him rather soon

Hakeem
Shaq
Kareem
Lebron
Jordan
Curry
Shaq
Magic
Bird
Russell
Wilt
Timmy
Isiah
Dr J
Big O
Moses

I'd consider taking all the above over KD

 

[Raquinotj]

You saw KD win two Finals MVPs.

What more do you want?

KD only wins with a Stacked deck, you take Steph off those GS championships teams and instead of 4 hall of famers there’s only 3 and LeBron and co take them out again. Real basketball heads know those two rings hold no weight.


Whoever wrote this for Giannis knows what’s up.

 

[WTFisWallace?]

Negged

Kawhi’s Toronto run can only be compared to Dirk’s 2011 run and Duncan’s 03 run in terms of the limited amount of talent around him. shyt was incredible.


OP brings up KD injuries holding him back…we saw Kawhi push his body to the max during the Toronto run…man has not really been the same since.

Kawhi also has the ring, where he was the key factor, even made Lebron wince during games…..over Wade & Lebron. Had it not been for that Ray Allen shot, nikka would’ve been part of really fukking up Lebron’s whole narrative. I don’t see how KD’s two championship run with Steph’s Warriors can even begin to compare.



I think nikkas really overlook what Kawhi has done. He’s clearly the 3rd best/impactful player of the 10s (behind Lebron and Steph obviously).

 

[Everythingg]

Ultimately there are just too many question marks with dude. Do I think he's one of the greatest players ever. Obviously yes...

But his decision making, on-court play in several occasions, and inability to mesh with other superstars aside from a team that was already a champion, reflect on the difficulty of having Durant as your best player. He isn't a consummate leader nor a true elevator of talent...

What he is though, is a guy who if you give him the most talented or Top heavy roster in The League, he can tilt the scales to nearly unbeatable. He's not a guy that if you give him league average rosters or less than Top 5 rosters, who can elevate you to contention, and he's not a ride or die player either...

The Kevin Durant Conundrum essentially is how a player of this historical magnitude accomplished so little and never proved to be the "driver" of Championship success...

Kareem is almost universally viewed as a top 5 player of all time yet he was not a leader. Needed Oscar and then later Magic. Keep it moving jack

 

[I AM WARHOL]

KD would’ve had a ring with OKC if he didn’t run into LeBron’s stacked deck superteam in the first place

 

[Everythingg]

This is what people mean when they question Durant's competitive fire, he's competitive when the odds are in his favor. If he has to go put in work absent the luxury of a loaded roster he looks funny...

That’s the blueprint Bron started when he started purposely stacking the deck with Wade and Bosh.

Every move he has made since then is based on stacking the deck to increase his chances of winning…

 

[BigTyme Records]

Nikka overrated AF

 

[CarltonJunior]

It's not a horrible take, his play in the '16 WCF was horrific. Even during the 3-1 lead Russ was their best player that series. He was terrible series long and that inability to save the series is a demerit...

His play in '22 Rd1 vs Boston is only less embarrassing because it came earlier, he was fukking terrible...

This isn't about what system he's been able to play in, it's how he evades critique for All-Time faceplants that other superstars are held to the fire for...

He didn't evade criticism, people's foot have been on his neck about it from the moment it happened. It's weird people still feel like KD isn't receiving criticism considering that he's being criticized constantly by fans and media on a daily basis. That's the reason he left GS to begin with.