Golden State Warriors general manager Bob Myers was sincere and genuine when talking about Kevin Durant recently on ESPN’s “The Woj Pod.”
Durant elevated the Warriors to juggernaut levels when he joined the team in 2016. He and Golden State wrecked the league while he was there, winning back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018. But his decision to leave for the Brooklyn Nets in 2019 produced some expected pushback.
Myers, though, spoke at length on why he has no hard feelings for Durant, and he acknowledged how much he helped the Warriors accomplish.
“Look, the guy came to our team, was MVP of the Finals twice, two championships, three Finals,” Myers told Adrian Wojnarowski, per Brian Witt of NBC Sports Bay Area. “What do you want? I mean, what do you want to happen? What do you expect out of a human being? What is the problem with that? But, people would find it and seek it.
“Everybody is so fast to look at what’s wrong with a team, and I was just so focused on — and still am — on what was right with all those things, even in losing. Even in the effort you make to win or lose, there are great experiences there. And so for me — and it may have come from I liked the guy, for all of him.
“A lot of people that comment on him would say he shouldn’t have left or he shouldn’t have done this — everybody’s telling him how to live his life. The way I think about Kevin is … just because you don’t understand doesn’t mean he’s confused.”
Myers was pretty candid here. He kept it real in his defense of Durant, who has received some of the most scorn of any NBA player.
Durant really doesn’t owe anyone an explanation as to why he decided to go to Brooklyn. The importance of the player empowerment era is that players can choose where they would best fit and gain as much fulfillment as possible. Reaching fulfillment in life can seem like an elusive task, almost never-ending.
But in moments, reaching one’s potential can be felt. For Durant, continuing to build his legacy in Brooklyn was the move — and that should be respected.
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