Looking back on when Kevin Durant signed with the Warriors

[Street Hunger]

ESPN's Zach Lowe on Get Up: "I sometimes wonder. ... Was [signing with the Warriors] the worst thing to happen to Kevin Durant? Because he went there, he won two Finals, won two Finals MVPs. No one can take that away from him. He's never going to get the credit that those accomplishments would normally bestow upon him because of how good the team was. I think he's realized that, his people realized that, he feels that, and he's been a wayward soul since that. I wonder, if he went back to that moment and Golden State was not an option for him, if he could have made his own path in a way that was more sustainable."

[Nowoco]

The only way KD's career could have gone worse than it has post 2019 is if he didnt have those two rings. It was the best thing that ever happened to him going to the Warriors.

[kawhileonard2]

The guy who broke Lebron

[SATAN]

It's weird how KD gets clowned so much for that move but the Warriors don't half as much. KD's rep has been impacted way more than Steph's for instance.

[Naero]

It's weird how KD gets clowned so much for that move but the Warriors don't half as much. KD's rep has been impacted way more than Steph's for instance.

Steph and the Warriors won 73 games and two titles without KD whereas the latter is ringless without them, and you think it's weird that he's respected less? GSW as a whole had plenty of flak at the time as well, but not even casuals could ever honestly argue that they overdepended on KD for success.

KD, on the other hand? Until, unless, he wins a non-GSW championship, the narrative will be that it took a dynastic superteam for him to win any rings. Not that it's necessarily true, but facts and logic only figure so much into legacies and reputations.

[GimmeThat]

it makes the GSW look like a bunch of shallow brainless cheap whores that gets dumped around. I just can't be sorry about my confidence.

[John8204]

It's weird how KD gets clowned so much for that move but the Warriors don't half as much. KD's rep has been impacted way more than Steph's for instance.

Is it

-Russel Westbrook
-James Harden
-Ben Simmons
-Kyrie Irving
-Blake Griffin
-Deandre Jordan
-LaMarcus Aldridge
-Andre Drummond
- Chris Paul
-Devin Booker
-Bradly Beal

You can't win a ring with those guys over your career...what type of legacy do you really have. We have a troll that bitches about Lebron not winning in seasons...look at the talent Durant has failed to win with. Signing with the Warriors wasn't the worst thing he did...leaving the warriors and failing as much as he did was.

[Jasper]

The only way KD's career could have gone worse than it has post 2019 is if he didnt have those two rings. It was the best thing that ever happened to him going to the Warriors.

he should of stayed.

[SATAN]

Just realized why the Curry fan taken a jab at me in another thread.

[Carbine]

Steph and the Warriors won 73 games and two titles without KD whereas the latter is ringless without them, and you think it's weird that he's respected less? GSW as a whole had plenty of flak at the time as well, but not even casuals could ever honestly argue that they overdepended on KD for success.

KD, on the other hand? Until, unless, he wins a non-GSW championship, the narrative will be that it took a dynastic superteam for him to win any rings. Not that it's necessarily true, but facts and logic only figure so much into legacies and reputations.

He made them a dynasty and I think many would argue the best team ever. They're on a short list.

The Warriors only won 1 up to that point and just lost in the most embarrassing fashion in finals history up to that point.

All in all, Durant is ranked right where he should be. A lot of people have him close to top 15 all time. That's about as high as someone without those leadership abilities can go. He has shown not to be a leader, so there has always been a cap on his all time ranking. That shit matters when it comes to setting a winning culture.

[Naero]

He made them a dynasty and I think many would argue the best team ever. They're on a short list.

The Warriors only won 1 up to that point and just lost in the most embarrassing fashion in finals history up to that point.

All in all, Durant is ranked right where he should be. A lot of people have him close to top 15 all time. That's about as high as someone without those leadership abilities can go. He has shown not to be a leader, so there has always been a cap on his all time ranking. That shit matters when it comes to setting a winning culture.

The Warriors were almost a dynasty without him, though, and winning “only one” championship was no inconsiderable feat in itself.

If anything, them losing in the 2016 Finals in that fashion reinforces that first point. Sure, it’s always inglorious to lose a 3-1 lead, but getting that close to repeating helps prove they were already a dynasty-level team at the very least.

KD was just the difference between being a dynasty and one of the GOAT dynasties. Obviously he improved them, but you’ll be hard-pressed to convince his detractors that they needed him to win titles. Personally, I think the late-2010s Warriors sans KD, when healthy, could’ve beaten anyone during that timeframe other than the ‘18 Rockets—who were easily one of the best modern teams not to win it all.

[NBAGOAT]

He made them a dynasty and I think many would argue the best team ever. They're on a short list.

The Warriors only won 1 up to that point and just lost in the most embarrassing fashion in finals history up to that point.

All in all, Durant is ranked right where he should be. A lot of people have him close to top 15 all time. That's about as high as someone without those leadership abilities can go. He has shown not to be a leader, so there has always been a cap on his all time ranking. That shit matters when it comes to setting a winning culture.

You’re not wrong there’s a high chance they don’t win one title in those years. However the narrative with gs is the core there won a title before durant got there and one after so they didn’t need him.

[SouBeachTalents]

The 2022 title should have forever put this argument to rest. We can speculate what happens to the Warriors without Durant when they went b2b, but here's a factual accounting of what they accomplished without him

67 wins and a championship

73 wins and a minute away from another championship

6 straight playoff wins after KD got hurt in 2019, a shot away from a Game 7 in the Finals despite Klay missing a game then the 4th in Game 6

I also believe the Warriors at one point went 31-1 in games Curry played and KD didn't

Another championship in 2022, with Curry lighting up the same team that locked KD down

Far too often this argument turns to KD made them better, yeah, no shit You add a top 15-20 player to a championship core, they're going to be better. I feel like there's just too much evidence at this point of the Warriors being successful without KD; 2 championships, 73 wins, insane record when Curry played and KD didn't, to continue to pretend they couldn't have won those 2 years KD was there.

You spend the money they did on KD to add 2-3 good role players, that core could have absolutely won 1-2 titles in '17 & '18.

[Wally450]

it makes the GSW look like a bunch of shallow brainless cheap whores that gets dumped around. I just can't be sorry about my confidence.

Why would a team get clowned for trying to make themselves better?

KD blew a 3-1 lead and played terribly against the team he eventually ran to with his tail between his legs. Then claimed it was going to be the hardest road.

Maybe in retrospect, it was the hardest road, because he hasn't done shit since he left GS.

[GimmeThat]

Why would a team get clowned for trying to make themselves better?

they should always get clowned.