Getty Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving
After the Phoenix Suns beat the Dallas Mavericks, Kevin Durant lauded his former teammate Kyrie Irving in an exclusive interview with Grant Afseth of DallasBasketball.com
Durant thinks so highly of his former teammate that he says Irving is the best basketball player ever, skill-wise.
“I think he’s the most skilled ever to play the game,” Durant told Afesth in a January 25 story. “I think that there’s nothing he can’t do with a basketball. So, it doesn’t matter what setting it is. He could do the same thing regardless if he’s playing Team USA, NBA, NBA Finals, Playoffs, Streetball, or Rec Ball. He can do it. He can play his game anywhere. That’s just a testament to how great he is and how hard he works.”
Durant and Irving played together for the Brooklyn Nets from 2019 to 2023. Despite their individual accolades, the furthest the two of them together in the playoffs was the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Though Durant and Irving did not live up to their potential as a duo, Irving is an accomplished player. He’s won a title, is an eight-time all-star and three-time All-NBA recipient, and is a member of the illustrious 50-40-90 club.
Kevin Durant’s List of Best ‘Bucket-Getters’
While talking with Chris Henderson, Kevin Durant listed who he thought the best pure scorers or “bucket-getters” in NBA history are. More specifically, who Kevin Durant had on his Mount Rushmore of scorers, so to speak.
This was tough. I had @KDTrey5 give me his mt Rushmore of bucket getters since 2000.
Can’t argue with
• himself
• @kobebryant
• BRON @KingJames
• McGrady @Tmac_213
What yall think? What would your list look like?
Watch full interview here: t.co/0VS5RJfZpP…
Durant listed himself, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Tracy McGrady. Each of those four players, at one point or multiple, led the NBA in scoring. Oddly enough, despite being one of the most accomplished professional basketball players ever, James led the league in scoring the least among those four, as he only did it once during the 2007-08 season, per Basketball-Reference.
Bryant and McGrady did it twice, while Durant did it four times. Despite being among the NBA’s scorers, none of those four led the league in that category while winning a title the exact same season.
Kevin Durant Questions Why He’s Not in GOAT Conversation
Kevin Durant earned his reputation as one of the best scorers in NBA history. However, he also believes he should be in the conversation for the greatest player of all time.
Durant believes his joining the Golden State Warriors is why people don’t put him in that conversation.
“Because I went to the Warriors,” Durant said while talking with The Arizona Republic’s Duane Rankin on January 21. “Why shouldn’t I be in that? That’s the question you should ask. Why not? What haven’t I done?”
On top of winning two championships, Durant has won the league’s Most Valuable Award, is a 14-time all-star, and is a 10-time All-NBA recipient. Joining the Warriors in 2016 when they came very close to winning their second consecutive title and set the NBA regular season record for most wins construes a strong argument that he joined a winner, not lead one.
Helping the Suns win their first title as a franchise could strengthen his case and get him more respect in that conversation.