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The partnership between Golden State Warriors superstars Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant is one of the most unlikely ones in NBA history — two ruthless scorers, each fresh off winning a scoring title in recent years — teaming up to cause ultimate destruction onto the rest of the league.
While the likes of Julius Erving and the newly-acquired Moses Malone won a title together, the Warriors have a chance to three-peat heading into this postseason, a chance that wouldn't be possible without some sacrifice from both sides of this coin.
“Not at all. He respect my game. He realized,” Durant said, when asked if he was surprised that Curry wanted him in Golden State, according to Michael Lee of The Athletic. “But it’s a partnership, 50-50. We both got to bring something to the table to make each other better. It’s not like Steph said, ‘KD, go ‘head bro, I got you. Let me step all the way back. Do you.’ I wouldn’t allow him to that. Because he wasn’t going to be the best version of himself. So I want us both to be the best version. So instead of taking 20 shots a night, just gotta take 18 apiece. Instead of me taking 26 shots, I may have to take 15 and that’s cool with me, because that’s what I signed up for.”
Durant's previous team in the Oklahoma City Thunder had just gone to blows with the Warriors in a cardiac seven-game series in the Western Conference Finals, but that showdown only helped both stars gain all the more respect for each other.
More than anything, it made Durant fall in love with the ball-sharing system Steve Kerr put in play for guys like Curry and Klay Thompson — the brand of basketball Durant had always wanted to play in OKC.
For Curry, adding Durant was only a small adjustment to make in exchange for a massive return.
“My game fits well to whoever it is. I don’t have to dominate the ball the whole game to be effective. Working off other guys is something I’ve been doing since I was in high school, in terms of how I see the game,” Curry said. “Honestly, it was fun at times when you’re shooting 25 times a game and you have the ball every possession. But in terms of the beauty of how we play now and the fact that I can still be as dominant a threat alongside other guys that are doing the exact same thing, that’s special.
“It’s about being a good, for lack of better term, a good person, in terms or playing basketball and enjoying what we do and celebrating each other’s success,” he said. “There is nothing threatening about any of it. It’s just, let’s play basketball and let’s bring the best out of each other and have fun doing it. That’s something we’ve talked about 2013 and on and people buy into it. And obviously, the results are proven in that. I am proud of that for sure. It’s just being consistent and being aware of what makes a successful team go.”
Durant has bought into that joy, and that's partly what has made him look all the more lethal as a member of the Warriors, baptized with a new mentality while keeping the scoring assassin harnessed within to unleash at a moment's notice.
