LeBron James and Kevin Durant have spent a big part of their careers fighting to see who was the best basketball player on earth. While is fair to say Bron hardly ever saw that title in jeopardy, KD put some pressure on the King’s shoulders in various seasons.
They have several similarities but there is one that stands out the most and that’s how they left their first NBA teams to team up with other stars trying to win their first championship. LeBron did it first, in 2010, when he joined forces with Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade in the Miami Heat after seven years with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Durant would do the same six years later when he left the Oklahoma City Thunder and joined the Golden State Warriors, the team that beat him the prior season. Both decisions were highly criticized around the NBA world, but people always noted that KD received more hate than LeBron. Back in 2018, one NBA tried to explain why one player got more backlash than the other.
“LeBron joined his friends to beat his enemies, Durant joined his enemies to beat his friends.” Twitter user ‘@vitricate’ wrote.
“LeBron joined his friends to beat his enemies, Durant joined his enemies to beat his friends.”
— MMMMMM OK 🇵🇸 (@Sprint76767) August 31, 2018
A lot of fans agreed with the statement, claiming that the relationship KD had with Russell Westbrook was stronger than any friendship LeBron could have had in Cleveland. Besides, LeBron didn’t go to an established team and even less to the team that just beat him the prior season.
Sounds about right. Russ should have been his best friend according to that tearful press conference he had a year before joining GS.
Now, KD "accidentally" likes posts describing Russ as a problem.
Curry and Klay should be wary of that man.
— Japser Gnobee (@JapserGnobe) August 31, 2018
KD's rings are meaningless. 73-9 team beat you after being up 3-1 on em. That team goes on to lose to a healthy Cavs team in the finals after a 3-1 lead. Then you join that team. You didn't have to earn those rings. 15 years from now Klay, Steph, Dray, and Iggy may be HOF'ers.
— 🐍👑🐐2️⃣3️⃣👑2️⃣3️⃣🐐👑🐍 (@Trigganomix) September 2, 2018
According to Russ they were like brothers
— 🏴☠️ひ أوليفر (@letmegetadolla7) August 31, 2018
https://twitter.com/holdemboss11/status/1035685801793732610
Well LeBron didn't lose to those 3 and THEN join them
— lou ☻ (@loujack_city) August 31, 2018
They both made decisions that didn’t sit well in their original teams, but that’s how this league works. Players are trying to win that ring and sometimes that requires making these types of choices. However, most fans see KD joining the Warriors worse than LeBron joining Miami.
