Now that the Golden State Warriors have won their fourth championship in eight years, the pundits are shooting darts at former Warriors star Kevin Durant.
The Mouth of the South, Charles Barkley, came for KD strongly during a guest appearance on “Get Up,” saying he and his peers do not give him the ultimate respect yet.
“Before KD gets that great respect from all the old heads, he’s going to have to win a championship as the guy, as the bus driver,” Barkley said. “Listen, when he joined, that team had already won a championship, so no disrespect; that’s just a fact.”
Barkley went on to explain, “But until he is the guy on a championship team, we’re not going to ever going to give him the respect that he probably deserves. The game hasn’t changed, Kobe said it, LeBron said it so we’re going to hold him to the same high standard.”
All this shit is nasty, another terrible analogy from a hatin old head that can’t accept that we making more bread than them. It’s just timing Chucky, don’t hate the playa https://t.co/43BWSuijjV
— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) June 20, 2022
Oh Really…
Of course, Durant was listening.
“All this sh*t is nasty, another terrible analogy from a hatin old head that can’t accept that we making more bread than them. It’s just timing Chucky, don’t hate the playa.”
KD also responded to a random Twitter user who tweeted his legacy had died. The response took shots at his signing with the Warriors while bringing up a San Francisco local who finally got his dream parade on Monday.
“I been dead since July 4 2016, but congrats to teh dubs and my boy Steezy, a Fillmore legend, man been waitin his whole life for a parade on market st.”
On the Fourth of July in 2016, the Warriors welcomed one of the most significantly impactful free-agent signings in franchise history. Durant announced he was joining the defending Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors after many teams pursued the seven-time All-Star and Most Valuable Player.
I been dead since July 4th 2016, but congrats to the dubs and my boy Steezy, a Fillmore legend, man been waitin his whole life for a parade on market st. https://t.co/LXtyvu7BwB
— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) June 17, 2022
The Decision 2.0
For many, Durant’s move was on par with LeBron James’ “the decision,” since during the 2016 postseason, his newfound teammates of Steph Curry and Klay Thompson eliminated Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder in seven games.
Then there was the breakdown last season with Durant’s Brooklyn Nets, who, without Kyrie Irving, placed much of the pressure on him, then James Harden bounced to Philadelphia in a trade for Ben Simmons and Seth Curry.
When the Nets were swept during the playoffs, it sent the pundits into an uproar about how a team with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant couldn’t win one game. Juxtaposed against the Warriors and Steph Curry’s indomitable will to will amid Klay Thompson coming back from injury and a poor scoring performance from Draymond Green, KD is looking like a tarnished star to his critics.
Generation Now
However, not everyone shares Barkley’s opinion. Pelicans guard CJ McCollum rebutted Barkley’s assertion.
“I strongly disagree with Charles Barkley here,” McCollum said on Get Up. “Obviously, he’s a legend in his own right; he’s a first-ballot Hall of Famer. He was the ‘bus driver’; however, he didn’t win a championship. I think in KD’s case, it was different. Obviously, he joined a very good team with a championship-caliber roster, very deep, but he was the ‘bus driver’ of that team.
“Obviously, you have Steph Curry, two-time MVP, unanimous. But he averaged 30 points, seven rebounds, four and a half assists in his fifteen games in his Finals career. He showed that he has the ability to take over games late. He was about to win a third straight Finals MVP before he ended up getting hurt against the Raptors, but I think his résumé speaks for itself.”
Love will get u killed https://t.co/Bs6eWzloQp
— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) June 17, 2022
Catch Flights Not Feelings
While Barkley claims to speak for the old heads, McCollum is voicing the opinion of Generation Now, and the receipts are returning favorably to KD’s legacy.
“There’s no blemishes on it, obviously, a lot of people aren’t happy with the decision that he made July 4 but it is what it is, and I think it made him a better basketball player.”
KD doesn’t need to drive buses, he flys private.
