"It's a dog-eat-dog world in NBA"- Kevin Durant shares unfiltered take on battling LeBron James in 2017 and 2018 Finals

Kevin Durant faced LeBron James in the 2017 and 2018 NBA Finals. Durant was part of the star-studded Golden State Warriors teams during those years and finished 8-1 against James in those championship rounds. KD, playing for the OKC Thunder, got payback after losing the 2012 NBA Finals to James’ Heatles.

In an interview with ESPN, Durant had this to say about facing the four-time MVP on the NBA’s grandest stage:

“It’s a dog-eat-dog in the NBA. Don’t want nobody to take everything that you got. You got to build up that dislike, not in a bad way, but when you’re on the floor, you can’t be friends. You can’t be cool with these guys. You can’t admire them.”

Kevin Durant’s battles with LeBron James in back-to-back finals appearances were legendary. Draymond Green usually primarily guarded James, but KD had his fair share of opportunities shadowing the then-Cleveland Cavaliers superstar.

On the other end, James normally guarded KD late in games. As arguably Cleveland’s best defender, he had to slow down The Slim Reaper. The Dubs’ stacked roster made James’ task unenviable. Durant won the NBA Finals MVP twice against the Cavaliers.

The two are close friends and sometimes hang out together. They compete hard against each other in the NBA. Durant’s “Dog-eat-dog in the NBA” mentality showed why he would even trash-talk James and vice versa.

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Fans react to Kevin Durant’s comments about facing LeBron James in the NBA Finals

Kevin Durant and LeBron James are two of the NBA’s most popular stars. It didn’t take long for his comments to go viral, prompting fans to react to his claim:

“Where was this mentality before you left OKC to go to Golden State 🧐.”

@simple_s0n said:

“cant admire them, but he joins them? oh nah.”

@prosody.josh added:

“Last person to have this conversation with. Respectfully.”

One fan reacted:

“This the same guy that joined the warriors after they smacked him up.”

Another fan commented:

“Should have stayed in okc and won.”

Fan reactions to Kevin Durant's "dog-eat-dog" world in the NBA. [photo: @nbaonespn/IG]

Fans have been trolling Kevin Durant since leaving the OKC Thunder in 2016 for the Bay Area team. In his last playoffs with the Thunder, Durant’s Thunder held a 3-1 Western Conference finals lead against the Golden State Warriors. Oklahoma collapsed, allowing the Dubs to win the classic seven-game series.

Durant left OKC to join the team that finished with a 73-9 record during the 2015-16 season. With KD in the lineup, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers won only one game in two championship rounds against the Dubs.

Many are still convinced KD would not have won a title had he not hopped on a super team. Some pushed back against his comments about playing James in the NBA Finals.