I Was Wrong About Kevin Durant

It was apparent something wasn't right the night I got to experience Kevin Durant live in New York City. The Net's elite point guard, Kyrie Irving, emerged from the Brooklyn tunnel less than five minutes before the game was slated to tip-off. Yet Durant seemed eerily calm. Warming up with effortless turn-around jump shots and high arching threes. When the first quarter finally arrived, he did not disappoint.

He scored 15 points in the first term, scoring with ease on almost all possessions. The defence had no answers. And yet the Nets found themselves trailing. Durant was let down by his teammates, a recurring pattern he has desperately tried to escape throughout his career. The Nets would go on to lose in a game that would mark the beginning of the end for Durant as a Brooklyn Net.

That night I was enlightened to the greatness of Durant and the pitfalls of his surrounding roster. I understood why he was so frustrated as the leading man on the Thunder. Why he requested a trade out of Brooklyn. Durant was criticised for being unable to bring a championship to Oklahoma City. Yet, it was no fault of his own. Durant wanted to win. And his legendary talents will continue to waste away he stays in Brooklyn.

Durant's move to the Golden State Warriors may be the most controversial decision an athlete has ever made. Durant choose winning over popularity, abandoning an entire fan base to join his bitter rival. And yet, it was the right move.

Durant went from playing with Russell Westbrook, a lousy teammate, to Steph Curry, the most accommodating basketball player since Magic Johnson. He was joining a team that had just finished with a historic 73-9 record. They had beaten Durant in the Western Conference Finals, overcoming a 3-1 deficit. And if Draymond Green, the best defender in the NBA, had not been suspended in the Finals. The Warriors would have defeated Lebron James, cementing themselves as the greatest team ever.

Durant was forced to choose between constantly losing with a high approval rating from the fans, or complete domination with eternal criticism. Durant picked the answer that almost every competitive athlete would pick. He decided to win.

When watching Durant in Brooklyn, I recognised that it's unfair to criticise someone for trying to maximise their talents while they still can. Durant is not getting any younger. So as he departs Brooklyn for Phoenix, instead of making the same mistake you made in 2017, criticising him for his drive to win, appreciate that he does care. Because so many athletes don’t.