Closing on a five-year anniversary since his last trip to the NBA Finals, Kevin Durant is all eyes on the prize as he zeroes into a chance to reach not only the top of the hill, but stand at the top of the mountain come June.

“That’s exciting,” the Golden State Warriors forward told Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. “But we’ve got one more game to finish off, and hopefully we can get this thing done and get as much rest as possible before we start to play, tune up our game plan. But the main focus is trying to finish this off [Monday].

Durant was at this same situation last year, a win away from getting to a long-awaited crack at the NBA Finals, ultimately falling short of the feat and losing the last three games of the series.

He even remembers the time when he and his tag-team partners, James Harden and Russell Westbrook went toe-to-toe with one of the most stacked teams in recent memory — the Miami Heat — during his first time reaching the finals with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

“When we went as a team in 2012, I just felt like it was our time,” said Durant. “We wanted that moment. We deserved that moment. It was just a special, special time.”

Having been there before, the Warriors swingman has a newfound respect for how special it is to be one of the last two teams standing come June.

RECOMMENDED (Article Continues Below)
Suns' Grayson Allen in middle shooting a basketball. Place a question mark on his left and his right.

Joey Mistretta ·

Magic F Paolo Banchero & Franz Wagner and a text bubble from Paolo saying 'We Need To Score More!' against the Cavs

Julian Ojeda ·

Magic Paolo Banchero with Cavaliers Donovan Mitchell after NBA Playoffs loss

Jay Postrado ·

“I respect how hard it is. It’s tough,” said Durant. “Stuff has to fall your way. You have to be a little bit lucky to get back to this point. This is where we are at this point in all of our lives. We want to get back to being one of the last two teams playing at the end of the [season].”

“We just look at it as another step,” he added. “Obviously, you want to be the last team standing. You definitely want to enjoy every moment, every step along the way. But you definitely know what the big picture is all about. We’re one of the last few teams playing. I’m definitely excited.”

The 10-year veteran is taking these playoffs one game at a time, with Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals still to take place on Monday night in front of a hostile road crowd at the AT&T Center in San Antonio.