"Closer to Harden than he is to MJ" - NBA fans flame James Worthy for saying Kevin Durant belongs in GOAT conversation

Despite being regarded as an all-time great offensive player, Phoenix Suns superstar forward Kevin Durant is often omitted from the NBA GOAT discussion. LA Lakers legend James Worthy recently made Durant's GOAT case. However, fans slammed the three-time NBA champion's opinion, highlighting Durant's career deficiencies.

Entering his 18th year in the league, Durant has amassed numerous accolades. He is a two-time champion and two-time NBA Finals MVP, one-time regular-season MVP, 14-time All-Star and 11-time All-NBA selectee. Meanwhile, he has four scoring titles, sitting eighth (28,924 points) on the NBA's all-time regular-season points list.

Durant's shot-creating ability and smooth shooting stroke for his size (6-foot-11) have garnered him high praise from those who value pure skill above all else. However, the 14-time All-Star's detractors have consistently criticized him for failing to lead his "own team" to a title.

Both of Durant's championships came after he joined the Golden State Warriors' historic 73-9 superteam in 2016. Given that he played alongside superstar point guard Steph Curry and stars Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, some don't count his two rings as legitimate.

However, Worthy seemingly views Durant's career differently. During an interview with ClutchPoints late last month, the Hall of Famer concurred that Durant should be viewed as a GOAT candidate.

"I do," Worthy said. "I've loved him since Texas. If I'm choosing somebody, he might be … Durant is cold-blooded at his height. And I think because there's so much attention on other players right now — he hasn't been forgotten about — but he's just been schmoozing along, and he still can put up numbers."

Worthy continued raving about Durant's offensive versatility, noting that he has become underrated.

"I just love his range, the way he can move out to the 3. You can't stop him in the midrange game, he's a pretty good defensive player and he doesn't get talked enough about," Worthy said. "If you're talking top seven guys who can be the greatest of all time, he's in there, in my opinion. He's just a phenomenal player."

On Thursday, fans on X, formerly Twitter, pushed back on Worthy's take. Many noted that Kevin Durant isn't close to challenging Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan and LA Lakers superstar forward LeBron James in the GOAT debate.

"He’s closer to [James] Harden than he is to MJ or LeBron," @HardenUTD said.

"KD ain't even better than [Larry] Bird," @quizure said.

Meanwhile, some reasoned that Durant is a tier below the true GOAT contenders.

"He’s arguably the greatest scorer of all time, but his resume isn’t Top 10 yet," @30problemz said.

"He’s in the next tier after the GOATs, but he has the talent and skill to be in the conversation," @klutchagent said.

However, others asserted that Durant must lead his own team to a championship to warrant GOAT consideration.

"KD's gotta lead a team and get to the finals and win it to at least be considered," @KingSmoove009 said.

"Nah, the Golden State move eliminated him from that debate forever," @HoopingNews1540 said.

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Kevin Durant says joining Warriors is only reason he isn't mentioned in GOAT discussion

As for Kevin Durant's thoughts on his GOAT case, he touched on it earlier this year in an interview with The Arizona Republic's Duane Rankin. When asked why his name isn't mentioned in the GOAT discussion, the two-time champion credited his 2016 move to Golden State.

"Because I went to the Warriors," Durant said.

However, Durant added that based on his resume, he deserves to be in consideration for the GOAT title.

"Why shouldn't I be in that? That's the question you should ask," Durant said. "Why not? What haven't I done?"

Approaching age 36 later this month, Kevin Durant is seemingly running out of time to win over his skeptics. Nevertheless, he appears content with how his career has panned out thus far.

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