Kevin Durant has never been one to worry about the future, but when your own ex-teammate tags you as the guy with the most pressure to win next season, it certainly paints a different picture about the state of your current situation.
For Kevin Durant, this is exactly the scenario he is facing after Kendrick Perkins called him out on ‘NBA Today.’ Here’s what he said:
“Kevin Durant is gonna be under the most pressure next year. Golden St. has reached the Finals, replaced him with Andrew Wiggins, & hasn’t lost a beat when healthy. KD, the performance he had against the Celtics was horrible.”
"Kevin Durant is gonna be under the most pressure next year. Golden St. has reached the Finals, replaced him with Andrew Wiggins, & hasn't lost a beat when healthy. KD, the performance he had against the Celtics was horrible."
Agree with @KendrickPerkins?pic.twitter.com/JhQVSUQ0UI
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) May 27, 2022
Kevin Durant came to Brooklyn to build a dynasty with his best friend. Instead, he has been met with one challenge after another as his old team finds success without him.
Now, after being eliminated in the first round, it’s up to him to prove he can make good on his promise and deliver on what he came to Brooklyn to do. If not, people will seriously start to question if he’s capable of winning a title on his own:
“But the biggest thing and I have said this before, I got a lot of love and respect for Kevin Durant,” said Stephen A. Smith. “I’ve gotten to know him a little over the years and I respect the hell out of him and we all know how I feel about Mama Durant. And he’s a two-time champion, a two-time NBA Finals MVP and one of the greatest players that has ever graced this game. … There’s no way around it. If the Golden State Warriors advance to the finals, unfortunately, and totally unfair to him, people will remember him more as being the dude who left Steph Curry, for Kyrie Irving than they will remember the championships. Because that’s how idiotic that move appears to be as of right now.”
The truth is, Durant still has something to prove. Despite his talent, and all the things he has accomplished as a player, he doesn’t have a great track record in the playoffs.
Besides his three years in Golden State, his playoff runs in OKC and Brooklyn leave much to be desired and suggest that Durant may have trouble leading a team of his own.
Next season, he will be pressured to break that stigma and prove once and for all that he doesn’t need Steph Curry to call himself a champion.
