As the 2020 Tokyo Olympics draws near, it seems the tension during Team USA Men’s Basketball practice is rising. In a video shared on Twitter on July 22, Brooklyn Nets’ star Kevin Durant is seen checking Miami Heat’s Bam Adebayo for breaking hoops code.
While Adebayo finds the exchange hilarious, it’s debatable whether or not Durant was actually joking when he called the 24-year-old center out on Twitter.
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Durant tweeted, “Dog seen me knock down the corner three and proceeds to work on his ball handling with the ball I green bean’d wit. Bro gotta learn some respect @Bam1of1.”
Adebayo quickly responded to his Olympic teammate’s comments, saying that it was actually Damian Lillard who stole his ball, capping off the message with a middle-finger emoji.
While Durant may not be in on the joke, one person who found the back-and-forth hilarious was Washington Wizards’ Bradley Beal, who was initially a part of Team USA before having to pull out due to health and safety protocols.
Beal retweeted the exchange between Adebayo and the “Slim Reaper” with a series of laughing-cry face emojis.
The Video Doesn’t Reveal If Adebayo Actually Stole Durant’s Ball or Not
A FIBA reporter Greydy Diaz was the first to share video of the altercation. She posted the clip on Instagram saying that there wasn’t sufficient evidence to know if Adebayo really did take Duran’t ball after he sank a corner three.
Diaz captioned the video, “4:50PM in Tokyo (I took this screengrab live at 3:50 am ET) Footage looks like Bam broke basketball code. KD wasn’t having it. We’re going to need another camera angle. Send all footage to my email. We’re gonna figure this out together.”
Durant’s reaction to Adebayo didn’t surprise many fans. After Bleacher Report posted the video on their Instagram account, the comments section filled with people calling out Durant. One person commented, “He did break the code but KD really a crybaby yo it’s crazy.”
Keldon’s face watching KD and Bam fight over a ball 😂
Another man wrote, “Damn KD gotta tweet about everything smh,” while others just found it hilarious that Durant was genuinely mad. One guy commented, “Yo KD stop being a baby. He gave you the ball. It’s practice. He didn’t realize you made it. Always salty over nothing lmak,” while another person wrote, “This man will FIND something to whine about.”
Adebayo also replied to Bleacher Report’s post. He commented with a blue cap emoji and wrote,” Ya’ll Seen My Tweet.”
Team USA’s Draymond Green Isa Huge Fan of Adebayo
GettyBam Adebayo (L) and Draymond Green of the United States talk during warmups before an exhibition game against Nigeria ahead of the Tokyo Olympic Games on July 10, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
While it may be hard to get along with Durant, Adebayo has formed a tight relationship with Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green. The 2017 Defensive Player of the Year spoke to the media about what it’s like playing alongside the Heat star, “Obviously, the way he reads the floor, the way he sees the game, it’s incredible. He’s an extremely good passer and uses other guys to his advantage.”
While one would think Adebayo would be taking lessons from the veteran center as they train for the Olympics, Green said it’s the opposite.
He was actually teaching me the other day how to be more effective with the fake dribble hand-off and was giving me a couple tips with that, which was incredible… I’ve watched him some since Kentucky and obviously through his four years with the Heat and his growth has been amazing. He’s a lot more athletic than I could ever imagine being, but I definitely see some similarities there. It’s great to have him on this team and be teammates as a guy I can learn from as he can learn from me.
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Team USA Star Slams Miami Heat’s Bam Adebayo: ‘Learn Some Respect’