NBA superstar Kevin Durant often gets a lot of criticism for his history of joining superteams and arguing with the fans on social media. As far as villains go, KD and his team are probably the embodiment of that classification in the basketball world.
But we’re seeing a different side of Durant in these Olympics. Before even playing their first game, Durant is proving himself as a leader for the team, and Bradley Beal recently shared what that was like:
“He said something very unique today. He said ‘be special. That’s why we’re here.’ And that stuck on to me. So hopefully, we can keep that mentality and understand that we’re here for a reason,” Bradley Beal said during Team USA camp, via Nets Daily.
His leadership is terrific. He’s 39-0 in USA basketball and that’s crazy. We definitely want to keep that going. It speaks volumes for him to be 10+ years in the league and still wanting to come back and be a part of this prestigious fraternity. We definitely look up to him to push us and lead us, but at the same time, he’s very unselfish. He’s very encouraging. He wants everyone to do well.” the Wizards guard said of the Nets forward.”
For a guy who is so widely hated by the fans, Durant really seems to be making a strong and positive impression for the guys on Team USA, which speaks to his level of impact in the locker room.
And while he was unable to lead the Nets to a title in 2021, it’s probably best not to count him out going forward.
