Now acting as the enforcer and key low-post presence of the New York Knicks, Enes Kanter still hasn’t forgotten all the agony he experienced from the Golden State Warriors.
As you may remember, Kanter was on the 2016 Oklahoma City Thunder team that squandered a 3-1 Western Conference Finals lead to the Warriors. Adding insult to injury, then-teammate Kevin Durant shocked the basketball world and joined Golden State just a month after, where he then won a championship this past year.
Kanter, who has no problem standing up to Turkey’s ruthless leader, is of course never shy to share his strong dislike to the defending champs. Here's what he told Knicks insider Al Iannazzone:
“I play for the Knicks, so whoever I go against, I don’t like them,” Kanter said after practice Sunday. “But Golden State a little bit more . . . It’s because of the history we have.”
His thoughts on Durant has toned down compared to last season, when the bolting was still fresh, but he also made sure that their relationship is not the same.
“I got no problem with him outside of the court. He’s a good dude. Obviously, he’s one of the best basketball players in the world. He’s been doing an unbelievable job with that team. On the court, it’s not just him. I just try to get in everybody’s head and try to make him play bad.”
Their teams will meet Monday night at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks have lost nine of their last 10 games, while the Warriors have won five of their last six, winning by an average of 24 points.
Kanter is having an efficient season in New York, averaging 14.2 points and 10.7 rebounds per game in just 26 minutes of action per appearance.
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