How Westbrook’s deal makes Kevin Durant a villain
Kevin Durant has become a villain in the NBA and Russell Westbrook’s new contract with the OKC Thunder cemented that role for the former MVP.
For eight years, Kevin Durant suited up for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In that stretch of eight years, he made one NBA Finals appearance and a total of four Western Conference Finals appearances. He’s made seven All-Star teams and First Team All-NBA five times. He won four scoring titles and an MVP.
Durant gave the Thunder eight mostly incredible years (and I say “mostly” because it’s important to take into consideration his injury-riddled seasons). He did something special on a nightly basis even when owner Clay Bennett uprooted the team and moved them away from Seattle. He did it when the team refused to spend money to keep James Harden. He did it when they surrounded him with Derek Fisher and Jeremy Lamb.
He gave them all he had and is now public enemy no. 1.
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Durant chose to take his career and his life into his own hands and after giving Thunder fans nearly a decade of amazing service, he made the executive decision to leave.
He made the best decision for his career. He went to the team that gave him the best chance at winning his first championship. He left for an organization that cares about winning and that understands what it takes to become a winner.
And in exercising his right to choose (free agent), Durant became the villain.
He suddenly became the face of everything that’s supposedly wrong with the modern NBA; stars leaving stagnant situations for greener pastures.
Throughout his NBA career, there was always a sense that Russell Westbrook was holding him back. At the same time, the dynamic duo puzzled fans and experts because it seemed like it was working, but it wasn’t working as well as it could have. There was clearly a power struggle, no matter how much they wanted to deny it.
Countless times, we saw Durant wide open and Westbrook choosing to take an ill-advised shot after dribbling way too much. When Durant went down with injury, Westbrook saw an opportunity to take control. And he captivated fans with his dazzling displays of athleticism, filling up the stat sheet en route to a bunch of losses. But his flaws were hidden behind intensity.
Westbrook has signed an extension with the Oklahoma City Thunder, a month after Durant announced that he would join the Warriors. And now, the roles are set–Durant is the villain while Westbrook is the NBA’s hero.
And the irony and the hypocrisy is sky-high.
Durant made the best decision for himself. He chose to join a team because he wanted to play in their passing, team system. He was attracted to them because of their chemistry, admiring how tight knit the Warriors are, like a family. He made the decision to leave understanding that his personal accolades and numbers might suffer for the sake of winning.
And, for some reason, that’s problematic to many.
Now, Westbrook’s intentions are not clear. Perhaps he truly loves the city that drafted him. Maybe he thinks that the Thunder have a shot to do something special with Steven Adams and Victor Oladipo right next to him.
Now the All-Star point guard heard all the Durant criticism. He’s not loyal. He’s weak. He’s a coward.
Westbrook gets a rare opportunity with this new deal and chapter. He gets called a hero for staying. He gets handed a team, which he seems to have wanted, to run all on his own. He can continue to play his reckless brand of basketball and no one will care. And he gets more money for just one more year of service.
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The expectations aren’t very high for the Thunder. They could sneak into the playoffs, but they’re no longer a title contender. Even if he doesn’t win, the narrative is set. He chose loyal over ring-chasing. Historically, the Thunder haven’t been all that great with just Westbrook and no Durant. As long he’s scoring 30 points every night, there’s no need to win–the blame can still go to Mr. Unreliable.
As soon as he put the pen to paper, Westbrook cemented Durant’s role as the worst person in the universe. Durant is the villain for choosing to be autonomous and join a situation where egos aren’t a factor and Westbrook is the brave hero for getting everything he wanted.