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The Golden State Warriors were turning into a juggernaut when Kevin Durant’s OKC Thunder were already a big problem in the West. At the time, both teams had young and talented superstars who were primed to become the NBA’s biggest rivals over the next several years.
Durant, Russell Westbrook and OKC, who have already appeared in four Western championship rounds, looked set to return to the NBA Finals in 2016.
The Thunder had a 3-1 lead in the conference finals against the defending champions from Oakland when they infamously collapsed and lost to the Warriors.
The stage was set for a potentially mouthwatering playoff between the two teams the following season when KD stunned the NBA by jumping ship to Golden State.
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On his podcast, Dan Patrick said he found Kevin Durant’s hugely controversial move disturbing:
“My problem with Durant going to Golden State was, you had them! You were going to beat them. And to me, I know it would be tough to play with Russell Westbrook.
"But Michael Jordan, I don’t think would go, ‘We can’t beat the Pistons. I’m gonna join the Pistons.’ If he did that and it was now? We’d be like, ‘Are you kidding me?’”
The veteran sports analyst said KD’s move was of the same magnitude as Michael Jordan’s had the Chicago Bulls superstar bolted to bitter rivals, the Detroit Pistons.
Before “His Airness” won his first NBA title in 1991 against the LA Lakers, he lost three straight playoff series against the “Bad Boys.”
Jordan never wavered in his belief that, at some point, he would win the NBA crown alongside the core of the team that toiled with him. He doggedly prepared himself and his teammates until they finally got their revenge and swept the Pistons in the 1991 Eastern Conference finals.
Who knows what could have been had Kevin Durant persisted and kept pushing on with Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka and the core of that young OKC team. Instead, he bolted for the Warriors and immediately created a dynasty with Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.
Kevin Durant is struggling without the Golden State Warriors
Kevin Durant found the most success in his NBA career when he was surrounded by the Golden State Warriors' plethora of unselfish stars. He won two championships and back-to-back finals MVPs while playing for the franchise.
The Warriors could have had three straight titles had KD and Klay Thompson not suffered injuries in the 2019 championship round.
Since leaving Golden State to play with Kyrie Irving, Durant has won only one series and was swept by the Boston Celtics in the 2022 playoffs. Even if Irving plays the full schedule and Ben Simmons gets back to his old self, Brooklyn will have its hands full in the loaded East.
If KD doesn’t win an NBA title as a franchise player, unfairly or not, the criticism against him will only grow louder. Critics will always consider his move to play with the Warriors as an easy way out to win a championship.
