Gilbert Arenas defends Kevin Durant amid major career backlash

minh | Golden State Warriors
August 22, 2024
Kevin Durant pointing at Gilbert ArenasFormer NBA star Gilbert Arenas defends the time when Kevin Durant decided to join the Golden State Warriors in the 2016-17 season. Many fans and critics alike flamed Durant for joining the team that beat him in the 2016 playoffs. Everyone saw this move as weak and cowardly. However, it appears that some don’t view it in that light, such as Arenas.To Arenas, what people fail to see is that despite the Warriors being a 73-9 team in the 2015-16 season, they went out of their way to recruit another star simply to beat LeBron James. In his opinion, people were too fixated on Durant’s decision rather than roasting Golden State for not being strong enough to surpass James’ Cleveland Cavaliers.

“They [Golden State Warriors] are the 73-9 team,” Arenas said. “Everybody put the narrative on KD for saying yes and not the Golden State Warriors for going out and getting a bazooka. Your guns weren’t big enough to beat LeBron James, that you got to go out & get a bazooka.”

Did Kevin Durant truly save the Warriors from LeBron James?

Gilbert Arenas defends Kevin Durant amid major career backlash
© Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

When one hears the team name Golden State Warriors, one would automatically associate it with Stephen Curry. However, half of Curry’s championship success had a lot to do with Kevin Durant’s arrival in the 2016-17 NBA season. With that in mind, was it really because of Durant that they were able to stop LeBron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers from winning multiple titles?

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If we’re going to compare Curry and Durant’s numbers from their first season playing together, they’re practically identical. Steph averaged 25.3 points, 6.6 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.8 steals per game. Durant, on the other hand, put up 25.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 1.1 steals per game. Looking at the numbers alone, one can assume that because of Kevin’s elite performances, the Warriors secured a sure ticket to an NBA title. However, we’d like to think it was the other way around.

The season prior to Durant’s uniting with the Warriors, the team beat the Chicago Bulls’ 72-10 record by one win. Despite losing in the 2016 NBA Finals, their regular season alone was proof enough that Golden State had what it took to be an elite team without the presence of another star. Plus, if we’re going to look at their rematch against LeBron in the Finals, the Warriors had a 3-1 lead, meaning they could’ve won back-to-back titles had they not fumbled from games 5-7.

With all that in mind, we feel like it was Durant who needed saving. Before moving to Golden State, the last time Kevin made an NBA Finals appearance was in 2012 when the Oklahoma City Thunder still had the trio of him, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden. After Harden’s departure, the Thunder struggled to replicate the success they had in 2012. Despite winning the MVP award in 2014, it was clear that OKC was no longer the right fit for Durant if he wanted to chase a ring. Having all that said, it was the Warriors who saved Durant from a championship drought.

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