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Kevin Durant isn't one to back down from criticism on social media. With ongoing discussions about his leadership skills, the Suns superstar made sure to speak up once more. The conversation started with a segment on ESPN's First Take where Stephen A. Smith was asked how much belief that he has in the Phoenix Suns.
“Not much,” said Smith. “But let me explain why. I don’t question the greatness nor the commitment of Kevin Durant. And you’ll be hard-pressed to find a bigger fan of Devin Booker than me. I love that brotha, I love his game. And Bradley Beal, I love seeing do what he did last night. He is very capable. But when you talk about Kevin Durant — this is what we’re not going to do. We’re not going to look at Kevin Durant and just measure him in terms of just his talent. It’s what ability you have to peel out of others.
He continued, “I think Kevin Durant is one of the greatest talents that this game has ever seen. I think that what he has done for the game of basketball. The ambassador that he is for the game of basketball, is to be applauded. But the flip side to all of that is that he has been relatively leaderless. He’s been very lacking in inspiration in terms of peeling out from those around him whatever you can give me.”
Durant responded to the clip of Smith's comments posted by the First Take X account and said, “I would disagree stephen. I would argue, passionately, that my intangibles have always been on par with my talent”
Smith, quoted the post and said, “‘And I would argue, passionately, that very little compares to your obvious GREATNESS as a talent. Including those intangibles”
While Smith's response to Durant was interesting, @BigPapiPhenom took the conversation a step further by posting, “bro we just want you to speak up more sometimes it seems like you don't hold team mates accountable until it's too late”
Durant replied, “Brother, respectfully, you’ve never been in a gym with me to know if I need to speak up or not. You’re just guessing with no information on the subject. Be better”
The never-ending conversation about Durant's leadership
Kevin Durant has had to consistently defend his leadership abilities, especially in his time with the Phoenix Suns. Durant spoke of his leadership in an interview with his agent Rich Kleiman in February on his platform The Boardroom, saying, “I don't feel like I want people to call me a leader, but I also don't want people to say I'm not one either, because they don't see what goes on behind the scenes of what I talk about or my intentions or relationships that I've built with my teammates and my support staff,”
The comments caused Perkins to speak against Durant's leadership on the March 3rd edition of NBA Countdown.
“I actually played with the guy, too. I mean, I played with him, so I mean, again, is Kevin Durant going to come in and punch in the clock and be a gym rat? Absolutely. Is he going to be a guy that's going to voice his opinion in the locker room and hold a guy accountable? He's not that guy. And I don't know any championship team that has ever wanted that, hasn't had a vocal leader in the locker room, right? That's going to lead, being an extension of the coach, hold guys accountable, and do everything that you need to do.”
The incessant conversations about Durant's leadership ability haven't stopped Durant from being a key contributor to winning. The Suns were a playoff team last season under Durant's leadership and look to emerge as a contender this year with the trio of Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal.
The Suns face off against the Lakers on Friday evening at 10 PM EST. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
