Kevin Durant recently sat down with Ashley ShahAhmadi of NBC for a short interview where he discussed the factors behind managing an 18-year career in the NBA so far. The Rockets’ 37-year-old superstar revealed the importance of staying dynamic and evolving his game while sticking with his fundamentals.
“I think the fundamental part of basketball is what I try to master. I know it’s always simple to say fundamentals matter, but I’m really stuck on that,” said Durant.
“I don’t try to be gimmicky or join a fad or take three step-backs in one play or shoot only threes all game. I adapted with the game, and I try to still keep an old-school type of mentality. I like mid-range shots, playing in the paint. It’s like a mixture of new school and old school ball is really why I’m still here.”
In his 18-year NBA career, Durant has averaged 27.1 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists while shooting 50.3% from the field and 39.1% from beyond the arc across 1197 regular season games. But the volume of his scoring is not the only reason behind managing to keep up with the dynamic nature of the league over nearly two decades.
And even today, at age 37, Durant is arguably having an All-NBA caliber season, which could have even been an MVP-caliber season if the Rockets had a better record. He is currently averaging 25.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.7 assists while shooting 51.8% from the floor and 40.9% from behind the three-point line.
The key takeaway from the 37-year-old superstar’s words here is that evolving your offensive skills with time and combining that with high-efficiency fundamental mid-range shots and aggressively attacking the rim like old school basketball has resulted in Durant having a successful 18-year NBA career.
Similarly, even with LeBron James, he was never initially a threat from three-point range, and he has evolved that part of his game to now lead the league in scoring in all-time, across a 23-year NBA career. Kevin Durant is fifth all-time after recently surpassing Michael Jordan on that list.
This arguably adds to the point that Durant has made all of his career that offense is the most important part of the game for winning championships. And if you are an offensively skilled player, you don’t have an 18-year career in the league with just one move in your bag. And there is no necessity to be flashy about your game.
It has to be a combination of playing inside and outside the paint, as well as spacing the floor with three-point shots, to be considered a real threat in today’s NBA and potentially have a long and prosperous career in the league.
