Kevin Durant shaded his former team, the Golden State Warriors, after agreeing to a new maximum-level contract with the Brooklyn Nets.
Durant, 30, made the high anticipated announcement on June 30 that he was taking his talents away from the Bay Area to the Big Apple.
Although there were some rumblings that the two time champion and Finals MVP might re-sign with his old team, Vegas oddsmakers have been calling this move for weeks.
Ultimately, the appeal of playing with notorious prima donna Kyrie Irving in New York was just too much for Durant – and he agreed to a four-year, $164 million contract with the Nets.
Durant played for the Warriors for three seasons, with his final year being marred by an awful injury in Game 5 of the NBA Finals that left him with a ruptured Achilles and at least one year of necessary recovery time.
Although Durant has not blamed Golden State publicly for his injury, many speculated that he was outraged at the team for allowing him to further hurt themselves at his expense. He reportedly felt pressured to return for that Game 5 of the NBA Finals despite him having an injured calf.
On Sunday night, after he made his big announcement that he was headed to Brooklyn, Durant liked a post on Instagram from Barstool Sports that he will miss next season due to “Warriors incompetence.”
It is unknown whether he meant to like the post from his real account or simply mixed it up with one of his no doubt many burners, but the fact remains that the sentiment is the same either way: he’s pissed off at the handling of his health by his prior organization.
Beyond that, shortly after he made his announcement, Durant reportedly spoke to his old Oklahoma City Thunder running mate Kendrick Perkins and indicated to him that he had a multitude of reasons for living the Warriors.
According to an interview Perkins did with ESPN, Durant felt unappreciated by Golden State fans and felt like he always came second fiddle to Stephen Curry.
Apparently, he believed that despite the fact that Curry was there before him and essentially turned the Warriors into what they are today, he should have been the one getting fans’ MVP chants that are normally reserved for Curry.
Essentially, Durant felt as though he should have gotten more love from the Bay than he did given all he brought to the franchise.
To be fair, for those keeping track at home, the Warriors won a single title with Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green as their core, and needed Durant to win an additional two.
Despite that, nobody quite acted like Durant was a necessary piece of the puzzle – right up until Golden State fell down three games to one in this year’s finals to the Toronto Raptors.
The Raptors would go on to win the NBA championship this year in six games.
Despite the seemingly weird dynamic at play between the Warriors and Durant, and despite the clear shade Durant has lobbed in the franchise’s general direction, team owner and chairman Joe Lacob indicated on July 1 that Durant’s number will be unofficially retired by the franchise.
Mind you, Andre Iguodala, who won a Finals MVP with the Warriors and also made his exit from the team the same day as Durant, has received no such courtesy as of yet.
At this point, Durant has not commented on Lacob’s recent announcement. It remains to be seen whether the sometimes emotional superstar will view this as an honor or a sad attempt at making things right after the Warriors’ alleged negligence cost him at least one year of his prime.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
