Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant formed one of the most successful on-court partnerships in NBA history.
The pair linked up in 2016, ultimately winning two titles together back-to-back and coming within a Durant Achilles injury and Klay Thompson ACL injury of winning a third.
Along the way, Durant also picked up the first two Finals MVPs of his illustrious career – thus establishing himself as a surefire future Hall of Famer.
Unfortunately, the road to that success wasn’t without bumps.
During a recent conversation with Logan Murdock of The Ringer, Curry spoke at length regarding his time playing alongside Durant.
“Curry expected Durant to meld perfectly into the Warriors’ culture,” Murdock noted. “He thought they would win a few titles and ride off into the sunset together. ‘He was our brother,’ Curry says.
“A month after Durant signed, Curry organized a team event at Steph’s East Bay home, where there were balloons that spelled out “Super Villains”, as a winking nod to the narrative created by Durant’s decision.
“On the floor, Durant had free rein to break Golden State’s free-flowing offense to get his own looks. ‘He wasn’t just some hired gun–type vibe for us,’ Curry says. ‘We were really trying to integrate him into how we do things.’
Although that Warriors team would go on to win two championships in three NBA Finals appearances, cracks began to show.
“The team couldn’t escape the noise,” Murdock continued.
“More importantly, when problems arose, the team swept the events under the rug in an effort to appease Durant. When Green got into a heated discussion with Durant in Sacramento during his first season, the two laughed it off publicly, touting how they watched the Super Bowl together the following day.
“When Curry and Durant couldn’t decide who should shoot the ball in the waning moments of an overtime loss against Memphis, the team told anyone within an earshot that it wasn’t a big deal. ‘Even with conversations with ‘Whose team is it?’ I couldn’t care less,’ Curry says. ‘Straight up. But the commentary is real.’
Eventually, Durant would leave for the Brooklyn Nets.
People have some strong reactions to Bronny’s girl.https://t.co/btEydLtqTt
— Game 7 (@game7__) March 1, 2022
The current relationship between Curry and Durant is a tough one to truly understand. Sometimes it seems like they’re not on the greatest of terms, like when Durant looked like he was taking a shot at Curry on Twitter or when he weighed in who was better between Curry and Kyrie Irving. Other times, like when Curry broke the all-time three-point record in New York and had Durant on hand to celebrate – it looks like they’re fine.
Whatever the status of their relationship may be, the pair accomplished a lot together. And no matter how they personally feel about it now, their achievements will forever live on in NBA lore.
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Jennifer Withers Hoey is a former Business Development Manager who transitioned to writing about sports. With valuable connections all over the West Coast, she has used those contacts to break some of the most interesting stories pertaining to the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Ducks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Seattle Supersonics (RIP), and more.
