Golden State‘s new forward, Kevin Durant, has always preached the importance of his teammates. Even his decision to leave Oklahoma City was a “basketball decision.”
For almost a decade, Durant battled on the court alongside Russell Westbrook. The enigmatic point guard is a force of nature with a lack of compassion for the rim; he's basically a walking triple-double, night in and night out.
They competed on the highest level together. But there are reports from a source close to Durant stating that he simply had enough.
From Bleacher Report's Howard Beck:
“Ultimately, he got frustrated and felt that they had plateaued,” said a person with insight into Durant's thought process. “[Donovan] came in, and he still had the same issues that he had with Russ under Scotty. The offense didn't change much. He still had to take a ton of contested shots every game; and that's when he had the ball at all.”
Sam Presti made Russell Westbrook The Man in OKC. Kevin Durant couldn't take it any more.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) July 4, 2016
Westbrook, as dynamic as he has been, has frustred Durant on plenty of occasions. Many times throughout this past season's Conference Finals, communication broke down, questionable shots were taken, and Westbrook seemed to dribble around way too much. All it did was frustrate KD even more.
There were several team arguments on the court, and the frustration was visible for everybody watching. For Durant to make the decision to leave is a testament to that very frustration.
In his letter with the Players Tribune, he speaks of “growth” and “evolution,” a clear indication that Oklahoma City no longer presented opportunities for either. And neither does playing with Westbrook.
You won't find many league MVPs and scoring champs that have to beg for the ball at crucial moments of big games. Durant could only imagine playing with a point guard who moves and distributes the ball consitently.
He also had frustrations with Coach Donovan‘s system, as well as GM Sam Presti's love of everything Westbrook. It left Durant on the outside looking in at times, as the offense would stall and hinge on Westbrook's next move, often at crucial times in the biggest games.
Things will be very different for Durant with the Warriors. Escaping these frustrations is a huge plus and a big factor that makes his decision seem more clear. Even those critical of Durant may have seen this decison coming years ago.
Westbrook can't be contained. And this time, the Thunder lose because of it.
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