Ahead of Thursday night’s game against the Dallas Mavericks, Kevin Durant was caught confronting a courtside fan. The clip, which has gone viral online, features Durant approaching the Mavericks fans and sharing a brief exchange before security arrived on the scene. If not for Durant’s intervention, they would have been kicked from the game completely.
While the words are hard to make out, you can see the woman try and make peace with Durant right away by offering a “handshake” that was completely ignored. At some point, we know Durant tells the couple something about being a “real human” as he continues the conversation with a very calm demeanor. The male fan says something about his “podcast” before Durant shrugs them both off to continue his pre-game routine.
While it was a small and insignificant encounter for Durant, the act of confronting those fans publicly will become a story for the next few days and it was surely a distraction for Durant and his team as they tried to prepare for a crucial game against a Western Conference rival. Arguably the biggest mystery of it all is why Durant felt compelled to do this knowing the kind of reaction it would cause.
Of course, as many fans pointed out, Durant has a long history of battling with his “haters.” While he usually sticks to social media warfare, Durant has never been shy about defending himself against all manner of slander, and tonight was just the latest example of the lengths he’s willing to go to in order to put people in their place.
Perhaps the only saving grace in this ordeal is that Durant told security to keep the fans in the game, which is a sign that he was able to keep his emotions in check. Unfortunately for Durant, this small encounter is arguably the biggest story of the season for him, given where he’s at with the Suns right now.
Is Kevin Durant The Most Controversial Player In The NBA?
Kevin Durant’s place among the all-time greats is a given after all he’s done in the NBA. As a former MVP, 2x champion, 14x All-Star, and 10x All-NBA player, Kevin Durant’s resume holds up against the best we’ve ever seen and he certainly believes that he ranks up there with the greatest.
Even so, it’s also true that Durant’s career is one of the most controversial. Before 2016, he was among the most beloved players in the league and his legendary MVP acceptance speech became a defining moment for his character.
But after joining the Warriors and linking up with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green, fans turned on Durant in an unprecedented way. Durant was blamed for ruining the league and he changed in the backlash that followed. He began to wage war on social media and frequently fired back when anyone came forward with criticism he deemed unfair.
Now, the NBA superstar is on his third team in six seasons going viral for defending his honor against courtside fans. At 35 years old, Durant is nearing the end of his career and this isn’t how anyone imagined he’d go out. At this point, the only way to silence the haters for good is just win a title and prove that he doesn’t need anyone (not even Stephen Curry) to win a championship. Of course, it will never stop him from bringing the fight back to his biggest critics.
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