Players that are selected top 3 in the NBA Draft are generally expected to become superstar-level or star-level players. When those players do not meet those expectations, the term used by many fans to describe those players is “busts”.
Kevin Durant has recently clapped back at the notion that athletes should be called busts. Durant shared the screenshot of a Tweet on his Instagram story that pointed out that many people, in general, fail to reach their “own targeted growth”, and also added that the athletes that people call busts have succeeded in changing “their livelihoods”.
There is definitely some truth to the Tweet. Making it to the NBA at all, let alone being a top-tier pick is a difficult thing to achieve for a basketball player. That requires hours of work and dedication to one’s craft. In that sense, every single player that makes the NBA is a success, as they are able to make a fair amount of money and change their and their loved ones’ lives for the better. The Tweet shared by Kevin Durant definitely provides a different perspective on calling any given athlete a bust.
Oftentimes too, people are really quick to call players busts, not giving them time to develop or get healthy. In 2009, many people thought that Stephen Curry would end up being a bust. That obviously isn’t the case, as Stephen Curry has won multiple championships and MVP awards in this league. Players should be given time to become the best version of themselves, and not every player is going to come into the league making an immediate impact.
Hopefully, people can develop a different outlook on the term “bust” in the future. There’s no doubt that sometimes top-tier prospects don’t deliver on the lofty expectations set for them, but at the same time, it’s important to remember that sometimes there are outside circumstances that prevent them from doing so.
