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Kevin Durant’s controversial decision to leave the Oklahoma City Thunder and join the Golden State Warriors received heavy criticism. Durant and the Thunder had just lost to the Warriors after blowing a 3-1 lead in the 2016 Western Conference Finals. And many thought that his decision to join Golden State was indicative of him running from the challenge of having to beat them.
Durant’s decision paid off for him eventually, after winning two NBA championships and two NBA Finals Most Valuable Player awards. However, KD winning his first title in Golden State isn’t enough for Hall of Famer Charles Barkley, who has been critical of his decision even after leaving to join the Brooklyn Nets. On the latest episode of his podcast, ‘The ETCs’, Durant had a strong response to Barkley and the rest of his critics.
“Bus riders, bus drivers, like, what does that even mean? We play a team game, I thought, at the end of the day. And we all played with great players, but I feel like I can stand out among any player. I don’t have to minimize myself, even for great players.
“So, nah, I never looked at it if I’m riding the bus, ’cause I played a lot of minutes, and I scored a lot of points for that team. Then you say I won’t get respect from the legends. Like, what legends? What group of legends are you talking about? Who? ‘Cause every time I run into a legend, I get nothing but love.”
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Barkley Throws Shade at Durant With ‘Bus Rider’ Comment
The ‘bus rider’ portion of the Nets star’s NSFW rant was in response to Barkley, who used the term as a metaphor to insinuate that Durant won the only two titles of his career because he joined a championship team. The TNT analyst also added that Durant won’t have the same respect as his contemporaries until he wins as the “bus driver”.
“Kobe Bryant said, ‘I had to win a championship without Shaq.’ LeBron James said, ‘I had to win a championship without [Dwayne] Wade and Chris Bosh. That’s the way this thing works. Before KD gets that great respect from all the old heads, he’s going to have to win a championship as the bus driver,” Barkley said on “Get Up!” in June 2022.
“Listen, he joined that team that already won a championship, no disrespect, that’s just a fact. … KD’s an all-time hell of a player, but until he is the guy on a championship [team], we’re not going to ever give him the respect that he probably deserves. The game hasn’t changed. Kobe said it, LeBron said it, and so we’re going to hold him to the same high standard.”
Kyrie Absence From Drew League Explained
Durant’s Brooklyn Nets co-star, Kyrie Irving, also came under heavy criticism after he didn’t appear in the Drew League tournament on July 16 after multiple reports confirmed he was supposed to be in attendance. On July 23, Landon Buford, formerly of “Forbes”, revealed the reason for his absence.
“Kyrie Irving skipped Drew League last weekend to do Coach Phil Handy’s clinic because he didn’t want cameras/attention per league sources,” Buford Tweeted on July 22.
Both Kyrie and KD have ruled the headlines this summer. With all signs pointing towards a Nets return, it will be interesting to see what impact they will have on the court this fall.
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