quote:yes, yes you are wrong. For players like Dirk and KD, those are good shots. They only need a sliver of an opening, and they practice those shots. KD's problem is he has a tendency to fall in love with the early 3, and Westbrook is his teammate.quote:
Durant can't create his own shot? Are we thinking of the same player?
cant create his own "good" shot. He is so tall that he can always just put up a contested jumper over a defender but that's not a shot you're going to in the last few minutes in a playoff game. Am I wrong?
The Summer of Durant
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Last: 9 yr ago by Deluxe
A few thoughts from my perspective (I live in the same neighborhood as KD in OKC... sorry in advance for any "cool story bro" moments in this post):
1) KD is not going to Boston or any other big market team. Any media speculation otherwise is just an attempt by a reporter to draw attention to himself.
2) From a basketball-only perspective, before the Spurs series I bought into the theory that KD would sign a 1-year deal to align his free agency with Russ's, then the two of them would re-evaluate after next season. Regardless of how the next 1-2 games play out against the Spurs, I'm shifting to the opinion that KD will sign a long term deal to stay in OKC. I think he's seeing enough improvement from Waiters/Kanter/Adams + competence from Donovan to feel comfortable that OKC will contend for championships through the remainder of his prime years.
3) Off the court, I get the impression that KD really likes OKC and the low-key vibe. I see him at local restaurants occasionally and he's never hounded by fans. People generally leave him alone and let him do his thing. He's basically a part of the community. The Thunder have also done a great job at limiting his press obligations. Neither of those things would be possible in a big market and would be difficult to achieve in just about any other NBA city.
4) I understand some of the comments on this thread about his somewhat aloof personality and "lovable loser", but KD is an all around good dude. He may not have the Kobe/MJ fire or desire for greatness, but he would be a credit to any organization he chose to play for. He stays out of trouble off the court and does great things for the community. There's an underprivileged elementary school that I occasionally volunteer at via Junior Achievement. When KD found out that a volunteer was cooking breakfast, lunch and dinner for all the kids from her house everyday, he build at $30k kitchen expansion onto the school and paid for a chef to cook their meals. Not saying that other NBA players wouldn't do the same, but just that story is just a testament to his involvement in the community here and why the community respects him back so much.
5) IF he was to look elsewhere, I think San Antonio, Golden State and Washington would be the options (the ONLY reason I mention Washington is because he's from there). No chance he goes to Houston and I'm not even sure why they'd warrant KD's time at this point. Just a dysfunctional mess.
6) Putting myself in KD's shoes, if I decided my time in OKC was up, no doubt in my mind I'd go to San Antonio over Golden State. GS is basically becoming showtime Lakers part 2. National media hype is unbelievable and KD would hate the obligations that come with that. Plus, GS is Steph's team. San Antonio just has an amazing organization. Popp is the greatest coach of all time IMO. Their star players are humble and not too flashy. I think KD would fit in really well and help the Spurs win numerous championships over the next 5 years.
TLDR: I think KD likes OKC, likes the team being built around him and ultimately stays in OKC for the long term. But if he decides he wants a change of scenery for whatever reason, I definitely think San Antonio is his best option given everything I know about him on/off the court.
1) KD is not going to Boston or any other big market team. Any media speculation otherwise is just an attempt by a reporter to draw attention to himself.
2) From a basketball-only perspective, before the Spurs series I bought into the theory that KD would sign a 1-year deal to align his free agency with Russ's, then the two of them would re-evaluate after next season. Regardless of how the next 1-2 games play out against the Spurs, I'm shifting to the opinion that KD will sign a long term deal to stay in OKC. I think he's seeing enough improvement from Waiters/Kanter/Adams + competence from Donovan to feel comfortable that OKC will contend for championships through the remainder of his prime years.
3) Off the court, I get the impression that KD really likes OKC and the low-key vibe. I see him at local restaurants occasionally and he's never hounded by fans. People generally leave him alone and let him do his thing. He's basically a part of the community. The Thunder have also done a great job at limiting his press obligations. Neither of those things would be possible in a big market and would be difficult to achieve in just about any other NBA city.
4) I understand some of the comments on this thread about his somewhat aloof personality and "lovable loser", but KD is an all around good dude. He may not have the Kobe/MJ fire or desire for greatness, but he would be a credit to any organization he chose to play for. He stays out of trouble off the court and does great things for the community. There's an underprivileged elementary school that I occasionally volunteer at via Junior Achievement. When KD found out that a volunteer was cooking breakfast, lunch and dinner for all the kids from her house everyday, he build at $30k kitchen expansion onto the school and paid for a chef to cook their meals. Not saying that other NBA players wouldn't do the same, but just that story is just a testament to his involvement in the community here and why the community respects him back so much.
5) IF he was to look elsewhere, I think San Antonio, Golden State and Washington would be the options (the ONLY reason I mention Washington is because he's from there). No chance he goes to Houston and I'm not even sure why they'd warrant KD's time at this point. Just a dysfunctional mess.
6) Putting myself in KD's shoes, if I decided my time in OKC was up, no doubt in my mind I'd go to San Antonio over Golden State. GS is basically becoming showtime Lakers part 2. National media hype is unbelievable and KD would hate the obligations that come with that. Plus, GS is Steph's team. San Antonio just has an amazing organization. Popp is the greatest coach of all time IMO. Their star players are humble and not too flashy. I think KD would fit in really well and help the Spurs win numerous championships over the next 5 years.
TLDR: I think KD likes OKC, likes the team being built around him and ultimately stays in OKC for the long term. But if he decides he wants a change of scenery for whatever reason, I definitely think San Antonio is his best option given everything I know about him on/off the court.
I'll have some of that Kool Aid. You live in The Hill? Or in Deep Deuce and claiming that as his hood? 
Haha I live in Deep Deuce but I can see his townhouse (aka series of connected townhomes) from my apartment. Perhaps that counts as "in my neighborhood"? But I do see him out and about in DD on occasion... mostly at DD Grill.
I didn't think that post was TOO kool-aidy... just my narrative based on facts, observations and perceptions about his life on/off the court. Is there anything you disagree with? To me, if he loved the spotlight, he would have played college ball at Duke or Kentucky, not a football school. If he just wanted out of OKC, he would have left after his rookie deal was up. I think the Thunder needed to prove to him this year that it will be more than just the Durant/Westbrook show moving forward and Donovan + the development of Adams/Kanter/Waiters have provided that assurance. And I think if he does decide to leave, he'll prefer to play in a smaller market like San Antonio, not Boston/NY/etc like many in the national media will lead us to believe. But we shall see!
I didn't think that post was TOO kool-aidy... just my narrative based on facts, observations and perceptions about his life on/off the court. Is there anything you disagree with? To me, if he loved the spotlight, he would have played college ball at Duke or Kentucky, not a football school. If he just wanted out of OKC, he would have left after his rookie deal was up. I think the Thunder needed to prove to him this year that it will be more than just the Durant/Westbrook show moving forward and Donovan + the development of Adams/Kanter/Waiters have provided that assurance. And I think if he does decide to leave, he'll prefer to play in a smaller market like San Antonio, not Boston/NY/etc like many in the national media will lead us to believe. But we shall see!
No, I live here too, I just think you are spot on.
Russ on the other hand, this city is the one who has tolerated his lows and probably the only place that loves him.
Russ on the other hand, this city is the one who has tolerated his lows and probably the only place that loves him.
quote:Even if KD does want to stay in OKC, I suppose it's possible he could sign a 1-year deal and wait for the cap to inflate one more season before locking in long term. My opinion is that KD is comfortable in OKC and likes the nucleus being built around him enough to stay long term (perhaps even sign the long term deal after this season), but I could be wrong.
I think he will stay in OKC next year on a 1 year deal, but won't sign longterm. I would almost be willing to bet my left nut that Russel will go to LA next summer. He's too flashy and fashionable for OKC.
Westbrook is a very interesting case. On the surface, I 100% agree that his persona matches up much better with Los Angeles than OKC. But he also had a chance to leave after his rookie deal was up and chose to stay. And IF KD locks in long term plus Kanter/Adams/Waiters continue to improve, that would be a tough situation to walk away from basketball-wise next year... esp to the dumpster fire Lakers. My chips would fall on the side of him staying in OKC, but I definitely wouldn't bet one of my testicles on it
I think both are there long term. Market sizes don't matter in today's NBA that much... Situations do. That in mind given the risks involved of a major roster shakeup when you join a new team, I doubt KD would see leaving his current team for another as a sure fire upgrade. They are annual contenders already. And Russ won't find a better star to pair with than Durant either. I just don't see how either leaving OKC makes any sense.
Agree that market size doesnt matter much from a pure basketball perspective but it does matter from an off-the-court, lifestyle perspective (which was more my point). Overall, I agree with you that situation is the No. 1 factor.
Imagine Westbrook and Derozan next to each other in LA
quote:
Durant seems like a lovable loser to me.
He struggles in the final stages of playoffs as other teams get better. Durant cant create his own shot and has no post game. There is something funny to me about watching a 6-10 guy relying on outside shots. Sure is a nice guy though.
I have to eat a little crow here. Durant has looked great these playoffs.
quote:quote:Go ahead and spit that crow back out. He looked horrible to end the series.quote:
Durant seems like a lovable loser to me.
He struggles in the final stages of playoffs as other teams get better. Durant cant create his own shot and has no post game. There is something funny to me about watching a 6-10 guy relying on outside shots. Sure is a nice guy though.
I have to eat a little crow here. Durant has looked great these playoffs.
exactly. Unfortunately the OKC flameout was normal, and par for the course for Durant's whole career. He had some really good stretches but ultimately couldn't get it done, especially last few minutes of fame 6 when they shut him down when he was in isolation mode.
as talented as he is, I just don't love him as the key player on my team. Put him as part of a big three or stacked roster and we are talking.
quote:I dunno. There were three historically GREAT teams in the western conference this year. Only one could make the finals. Thunder beat one and came pretty damn close to beating the other.quote:quote:Go ahead and spit that crow back out. He looked horrible to end the series.quote:
Durant seems like a lovable loser to me.
He struggles in the final stages of playoffs as other teams get better. Durant cant create his own shot and has no post game. There is something funny to me about watching a 6-10 guy relying on outside shots. Sure is a nice guy though.
I have to eat a little crow here. Durant has looked great these playoffs.
exactly. Unfortunately the OKC flameout was normal, and par for the course for Durant's whole career. He had some really good stretches but ultimately couldn't get it done, especially last few minutes of fame 6 when they shut him down when he was in isolation mode.
as talented as he is, I just don't love him as the key player on my team. Put him as part of a big three or stacked roster and we are talking.
Not saying KD is Mr. Clutch, but I think yall are selling him a bit short.
Deluxe, Youre right of course. If we are comparing him to Lebron and curry, he doesn't measure up.
But who else in the nba is better? None of derozan, wade, Duncan, kawhi Leonard, Kobe, Westbrook, Blake griffin, etc, are singlehandedly killing their opponents late in the playoffs like we want Durant to do.
Still, I'd like to see him win a title where he is closing out difficult games late....
But who else in the nba is better? None of derozan, wade, Duncan, kawhi Leonard, Kobe, Westbrook, Blake griffin, etc, are singlehandedly killing their opponents late in the playoffs like we want Durant to do.
Still, I'd like to see him win a title where he is closing out difficult games late....
Agreed
Is Miami out of the running for KD? Or were they never in contention. I heard the Heat come up a few times but nothing as of lately.
quote:
Is Miami out of the running for KD? Or were they never in contention. I heard the Heat come up a few times but nothing as of lately.
Only time I ever heard the heat mentioned in it was yesterday
By chance do you remember what was said? Haven't kept up recently.
quote:
By chance do you remember what was said? Haven't kept up recently.
It was just a notification I got from somewhere. I didn't open it. I think the notification just said heat expected to make strong push
quote:Yeah, I was very impressed with him these playoffs. Golden State took a herculean effort to avoid elimination. 11/16 from three by Klay Thompson in game 6. If he misses even just 1-2 more of those, I don't think they come back and win.quote:I dunno. There were three historically GREAT teams in the western conference this year. Only one could make the finals. Thunder beat one and came pretty damn close to beating the other.quote:quote:Go ahead and spit that crow back out. He looked horrible to end the series.quote:
Durant seems like a lovable loser to me.
He struggles in the final stages of playoffs as other teams get better. Durant cant create his own shot and has no post game. There is something funny to me about watching a 6-10 guy relying on outside shots. Sure is a nice guy though.
I have to eat a little crow here. Durant has looked great these playoffs.
exactly. Unfortunately the OKC flameout was normal, and par for the course for Durant's whole career. He had some really good stretches but ultimately couldn't get it done, especially last few minutes of fame 6 when they shut him down when he was in isolation mode.
as talented as he is, I just don't love him as the key player on my team. Put him as part of a big three or stacked roster and we are talking.
Not saying KD is Mr. Clutch, but I think yall are selling him a bit short.
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/16089303/kevin-durant-james-harden-hanging-rockets-not-likely-teams-durant-consider-free-agency
No surprise here but Marc Stein reporting that a 2-year max deal to stay in OKC is most likely scenario for KD. If he decides to seriously look elsewhere, GS and San Antonio will be OKC's primary competition.
Houston is out (SHOCKING) and of course he had to slip in a Boston angle because he works for ESPN. It makes a ton of sense that Isaiah Thomas could lure him there, right? Lol.
No surprise here but Marc Stein reporting that a 2-year max deal to stay in OKC is most likely scenario for KD. If he decides to seriously look elsewhere, GS and San Antonio will be OKC's primary competition.
Houston is out (SHOCKING) and of course he had to slip in a Boston angle because he works for ESPN. It makes a ton of sense that Isaiah Thomas could lure him there, right? Lol.
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