NBA Playoffs 2019: 5 Best players so far before the NBA Finals

#2 Kevin Durant

Kevin Durant

Following a Game 2 of a first round series in which the Warriors blew a 31-point lead and Kevin Durant took only 12 shots, he responded to questions post-game with an emphatic "Y'all know who I am, I'm Kevin Durant."

In the 8 games that followed, Durant had performances in which he scored 38 points in 3 quarters (Game 3 of the first round), 38 points in a half and 50 in a game (game 6), scores of 46 and 34 in losses to the Rockets and a 22-point performance before going off in Game 5 of the Conference Semifinals with injury.

By the time he went off the court, there was no doubt in any onlooker's mind about what they were watching - an all-time great in the prime of his powers, willing his team to victories on days they didn't look fated to.

Durant has expanded his defensive repertoire even further in these playoffs, and was effective against the likes of Eric Gordon, James Harden and CP3 whenever tasked with guarding these high-scoring guards. His help defense wasn't at the same level as last year, but Durant still contributed a fair bit to the Warriors' paint defense.

In all probability, Durant will sign a supermax contract with the Warriors to settle down for an extended period of success, and we can do nothing about it, just as we can do nothing about his jumper from the mid-post region on the right.