The NBA schedule-makers knew full well about the drama that surrounds the Brooklyn’s two superstars when they were preparing the 2020-21 slate of games. Why else would the Nets open up against the Golden State Warriors and then play the Boston Celtics on Christmas?
Since Kevin Durant is facing his old team on Tuesday, it’s no surprise he received questions about his departure from Golden State. Aside from the chatter that surrounded the team during the season, the ending was also strange with Durant trying to power through an injury during the 2019 NBA Finals — which of course resulted to him rupturing his Achilles and missing all of 2019-20.
“Injuries happen in this league,” Durant said on a Zoom call with reporters on Monday. “I had a tough one. But I wouldn’t blame that on anybody.”
Durant was also asked if he left Golden State for Brooklyn to have something he can “call his own,” having previously played with a Warriors group that had already won a title before his arrival.
“Everything I’ve been a part of is my own,” Durant said. “I feel like, every team I’ve been a part of is my own. I feel like every team I’ve been a part of, I left my mark on each team and I stamped what I bring to the table. I never looked at it as just mine. I don’t look at the Nets as mine. It’’s our team. From the fans to the owners to the players, it’s our team.
“I feel like I add me piece to the game, and my role is to go out there and be me every single day. I might play more and get more touches than other guys, but i still don’t feel like it’s just mine. When I was with OKC and when I was with the Warriors, nobody on our team felt like it was one guy’s chance to take this whole thing over or one singular voice. It’s always been a group no matter where I played since I was eight or nine years old — it’s always been about the team.
“So, I kinda shy away from — my game is gonna speak for itself. Personality-wise, individual-wise, I try not to make myself bigger than the group. But I know what I add to a basketball club and I felt that way with the Warriors. So, it wasn’t about me going to the Nets to try to prove that I can make my own, whatever the hell that means. It’s just that I come in here to play basketball and add to a group of great guys.”
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