Prior to his first game against Victor Wembanyama on Tuesday night, Kevin Durant was asked for his thoughts on the Frenchman calling him his favorite player, and Durant had a hilarious reaction to it.
“That mean I’m old.”
You hear more and more players who are coming into the league now who call Durant their favorite player growing up. While he certainly appreciates it, it’s also a sign of just how long he’s been in the league now.
Durant was the second pick of the 2007 NBA Draft and it’s amazing that he is still going strong all these years later. In his 16th season in the league, the 35-year-old has averaged 27.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game.
He had a fine game against Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs as well, finishing with 26 points, 2 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 blocks, but the Phoenix Suns still suffered a stunning defeat. The Spurs roared back from down 20 at one stage to win 115-114, with Wembanyama recording 18 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, and 4 blocks.
Victor Wembanyama And Kevin Durant Praised Each Other After The Game
The first meeting between these did have a lot of hype and they did not disappoint. It was a fascinating duel and after the game, Durant was asked what he made of the 19-year-old in their first meeting.
“Yeah, he is just a unique player,” Durant said. “He is going to be a force in this league for a long time. Once he continues to get experience under his belt, he is just going to get even better.”
(starts at 2:06 mark):
Wembanyama, meanwhile, was very impressed by what he saw from Durant. The Frenchman spoke about how difficult it was for him to guard the 13-time All-Star.
“Special,” Wembanyama said when asked what it was like to share the court with Durant. “He really (is) a problem and I can see that. His teammates really look for him. They make him a problem too. The way they set up the plays and they try to look for him. Definitely, I think he is (one of the) top hardest players to guard in the league. I just played against him once and I know I haven’t seen the whole of him or the other players in the league but I think he is up there.”
(start at 2:36 mark):
Fortunately for Wembanyama, there aren’t too many players who are more difficult to guard than Durant in the NBA. He has given defenses nightmares over the years and will continue to do so.
Luckily, we don’t have to wait for too long to see these two in action again, as the Spurs and the Suns play again on Thursday.
The Suns Are In A Bit Of Trouble
While Durant continues to play at a high level, some alarm bells are starting to ring in Phoenix. While their struggles in the fourth quarter are concerning, the biggest issue is that the injury bug has struck already.
Bradley Beal is yet to make his debut for the Suns while Devin Booker has been on the sidelines after the first game of the season. Scarily, head coach Frank Vogel stated that there is no timeline for a return for either of the two at this point.
“Frank Vogel said there’s no real timetable for Devin Booker and Bradley Beal to return yet. Both have begun doing on-court work, but it’s mostly been light shooting.”
https://twitter.com/GeraldBourguet/status/1719508937957945433
One of the biggest question marks about the Suns was the health of their stars and it’s not a good sign that two of them are already missing time this early in the season. The longer they are out, the bigger the load on Durant and that means a greater chance of him breaking down at some point. The early signs are just not good for Phoenix.
We sincerely appreciate and respect you as a reader of our site. It would help us a lot if you follow us on Google News because of the latest update.
Thanks for following us. We really appreciate your support.
