The Kevin Durant Thread (2016 - 17 Pt. 1)

[Coxy]

It's both incredibly exciting and incredibly deflating to see KD on the Dubs.

Having said that, KD had to make this decision. He wanted to play on an actual basketball team. Billy Donovan and Westbrook do not make for a basketball team.

Yeah, not gonna lie, I got kind of a deflating feeling in my stomach at a few points watching GS during preseason. Don't get me wrong, I'm having a great time watching them and its amazing basketball, and I'm rooting for them to succeed. But man. It doesn't seem fair, does it?

Such a weird feeling. Excited enjoyment, and being bummed out at the same time. Didn't expect to feel like this either. Of course I'm happy for KD and love that he made a decision for himself. And obviously its not written in stone that they'll win. But was watching one of the games and they were messing around, then at one point they just went super saiyan god and started wrecking shop, KD erasing the other team on defense and then bombing 3's with Steph and Klay, and I was like....damn, this is awesome, but it kinda sucks a little bit. And suddenly I started thinking back to something Lex Luthor said when Superman was moving a continent or something.

"No one should have this kind of power."

Didn't even get that feeling watching the Big 3 Heat. Again, don't mean at all to sound like I'm denigrating KD or the Warriors. I'm happy for both of them, and its going to be unbelievable television. But dude... something just wasn't sitting right. Didn't expect at all to feel that way, but yeah. I know what you mean.

That's our problem though. And it sure as hell won't stop me from tuning in every night and enjoying their success. Like all those guys and wish them the best.

Good post, and it would be nice if everyone had this approach as well.

[Statlanta]

Yeah, not gonna lie, I got kind of a deflating feeling in my stomach at a few points watching GS during preseason. Don't get me wrong, I'm having a great time watching them and its amazing basketball, and I'm rooting for them to succeed. But man. It doesn't seem fair, does it?

Such a weird feeling. Excited enjoyment, and being bummed out at the same time. Didn't expect to feel like this either. Of course I'm happy for KD and love that he made a decision for himself. And obviously its not written in stone that they'll win. But was watching one of the games and they were messing around, then at one point they just went super saiyan god and started wrecking shop, KD erasing the other team on defense and then bombing 3's with Steph and Klay, and I was like....damn, this is awesome, but it kinda sucks a little bit. And suddenly I started thinking back to something Lex Luthor said when Superman was moving a continent or something.

"No one should have this kind of power."

Didn't even get that feeling watching the Big 3 Heat. Again, don't mean at all to sound like I'm denigrating KD or the Warriors. I'm happy for both of them, and its going to be unbelievable television. But dude... something just wasn't sitting right. Didn't expect at all to feel that way, but yeah. I know what you mean.

That's our problem though. And it sure as hell won't stop me from tuning in every night and enjoying their success. Like all those guys and wish them the best.

I feel this as well especially as opposing teams put their head down after the ball sails through the hoop at the range these guys are hitting them. The fact that it's a proven championship coach calling plays instead of the more simple sets that the Heat ran especially at their inception made me think it is less fair for the league. The incomplete fit, the mediocre start, and the skeptical nature that surrounded Spoelstra helped added to the mystique that the Heat weren't too bad for the league. I love the Warriors more than I think the normal RealGM user since they are a pass-heavy team with talent in the West and my team is not known for winning games so it's a refreshing change of pace to watch them. I think their style of play while entertaining just looks so demoralizing to guard with the nature of the 3pt shot than say the scattered amount of times the Heat threw Wade-LeBron lobs. You can kind of guard the Miami team in the half-court, with the GOAT spacing here I'm not sure you can consistently guard this team in the halfcourt. I think what we're seeing is just a different un-accustomed form of dominance just like how Showtime was dominant and how Shaq-Kobe was doiminant.

EDIT: I think your Lex Luthor quote was from All-Star Superman.

[StepBackCrack]

Read on Twitter

It's really awesome that he finally having a great coach coaching him. With all duo respect to Donovan/Brooks, they are nowhere near Steve Kerr as a coach.

[StepBackCrack]

Read on Twitter

[StepBackCrack]

I hope the myth that Durant is mostly a scorer and nothing more than that will die this season. Than man can do it all on the court and in GSW's great ball movement system, that will be pretty obvious to see. You will see him playmake, score, shoot, defend, help defend, screen, move off-ball, cut at elite level. Being on GSW will make him improve in all these aspects.

[StepBackCrack]

His biggest improvement on GSW so far is his off-ball game. He looks much better in that aspect and it's like he played on GSW for many years already. I didn't expect him to improve in that aspect that fast but I guess If you are that extremely talented, you learn things faster and that's what's happening atm.

[Bergmaniac]

^Are you one of Durant's PR guys?

[StepBackCrack]

^Are you one of Durant's PR guys?

I'm not. I was just observing what I see from him on the court. I have been following him for a long time and now that he is on a different team, I can clearly notice the differences in his play or what impact GSW's system has on his play. So far so good I'd say. He looked great in the preseason.

[Pillendreher]

^Are you one of Durant's PR guys?

Nah, just a friend he finally made after leaving OKC.

[lorak]

I hope the myth that Durant is mostly a scorer and nothing more than that will die this season.

Is it really a myth or just some strawman from you? Because I don't know how anyone could say "he is mostly a scorer" about a player, who is averaging 5 APG and almost 8 RPG last four seasons.

[SideshowBob]

Same with the off-ball game. He's been lauded for his scoring skillset off the ball since like 2010 - this isn't something new at all.

Looking ahead towards the season, this is the impression I had at the end of last year, and probably the baseline around which I'll be initially judging him early this year:

Durant is great and has shown improvements in his ability to be a positive defensively at the 4. But I also think his iso and P&R handling are weaker - I def. think he has a harder time shaking his man to get to the basket off the dribble and this tips his balance of slashing/mid-range in the favor of mid-range, which isn't necessarily bad, but I think before was better. At best I think he's on par with 13 & 14, at worst slightly regressed (w/better D, slightly weaker O)

Spoiler:

Russ is great but not portable. I'm not sure he's better than last year - it's evident that he struck a better creating/slashing/playmaking balance this year and his physical passing ability straight up looked improved, but I also thought his jumper regressed (maybe this is just me?) and that hampered his scoring game a bit. He was as explosive as ever getting to the rack but the weaker shot makes him slightly easier to defend. His game's not portable, but the impression I've had since he came back from injury in 2014 is that he's been OKC's best player and I feel comfortable sticking to that.

I haven't watched much of the preseason, so no initial impressions yet. But I'm confident that him as he was in 2016 is a perfect fit for this offense - I don't think he needed to necessarily add/change anything about his game to succeed with this system, because he was already ideal for it. The changes from 13/14 -> 16 are IMO well suited for GSW; he fills some of their deficiencies (not holes) on offense and really pushes their ceiling rather than clashing with what's already there.

[StepBackCrack]

I hope the myth that Durant is mostly a scorer and nothing more than that will die this season.

Is it really a myth or just some strawman from you? Because I don't know how anyone could say "he is mostly a scorer" about a player, who is averaging 5 APG and almost 8 RPG last four seasons.

I don't know about realgm since I'm new on here but I saw many people on twitter compare him to Melo and underrate his defense and playmaking ability. He is a great 2-way player but he isn't treated that way from what I've seen.

[totallystoked]

It was embarrassing watching Durant and Brook fail so often and so badly at the end of games last season. Donovan did nothing to reign in westbrook or durant, and watching them force the action with no plan was an embarrassment to the game.

Durant has a real coach now, and he's on a real basketball TEAM. No more JV coach. A pg who is the exact opposite of brook's in-efficiency.

Durant has a new lease on his basketball life. Which is bad for league parity. And brook has a chance to win the award he truly cares most about: the individual MVP. But it destroys his chances of winning a championship.

This breakup reminds me a bit of a poor man's version of shaq and kobe splitting apart. Only brook won't get his championship and durant likely will.

[StepBackCrack]

Same with the off-ball game. He's been lauded for his scoring skillset off the ball since like 2010 - this isn't something new at all.

Looking ahead towards the season, this is the impression I had at the end of last year, and probably the baseline around which I'll be initially judging him early this year:

Durant is great and has shown improvements in his ability to be a positive defensively at the 4. But I also think his iso and P&R handling are weaker - I def. think he has a harder time shaking his man to get to the basket off the dribble and this tips his balance of slashing/mid-range in the favor of mid-range, which isn't necessarily bad, but I think before was better. At best I think he's on par with 13 & 14, at worst slightly regressed (w/better D, slightly weaker O)

Spoiler:

Russ is great but not portable. I'm not sure he's better than last year - it's evident that he struck a better creating/slashing/playmaking balance this year and his physical passing ability straight up looked improved, but I also thought his jumper regressed (maybe this is just me?) and that hampered his scoring game a bit. He was as explosive as ever getting to the rack but the weaker shot makes him slightly easier to defend. His game's not portable, but the impression I've had since he came back from injury in 2014 is that he's been OKC's best player and I feel comfortable sticking to that.

I haven't watched much of the preseason, so no initial impressions yet. But I'm confident that him as he was in 2016 is a perfect fit for this offense - I don't think he needed to necessarily add/change anything about his game to succeed with this system, because he was already ideal for it. The changes from 13/14 -> 16 are IMO well suited for GSW; he fills some of their deficiencies (not holes) on offense and really pushes their ceiling rather than clashing with what's already there.

He is already adjusting tho (if you watch him in his preseason games). His off-ball movement is getting better and better. Moving the ball more to keep up the great ball movement that GSW is known for. He is a great fir there but still has to do certain things in order to adjust. Overall, I expect him to be a better player in GS duo to the elite coaching (something he never had in his previous team) that he is receiving and due to him being a great fit there. 17 Durant will be the best Durant if he stays healthy. That's my prediction but we will see what happens.

[StepBackCrack]

It was embarrassing watching Durant and Brook fail so often and so badly at the end of games last season. Donovan did nothing to reign in westbrook or durant, and watching them force the action with no plan was an embarrassment to the game.

Durant has a real coach now, and he's on a real basketball TEAM. No more JV coach. A pg who is the exact opposite of brook's in-efficiency.

Durant has a new lease on his basketball life. Which is bad for league parity. And brook has a chance to win the award he truly cares most about: the individual MVP. But it destroys his chances of winning a championship.

This breakup reminds me a bit of a poor man's version of shaq and kobe splitting apart. Only brook won't get his championship and durant likely will.

Yup. Coaching is extremely important. That alone I believe will make Durant a better player in GSW. The gap between Kerr and Brooks/Donovan is huge. Durant is gonna learn a lot from Kerr. Regarding Russ, he is a great player but I think he was a bad fit for Durant. That's all. Steph compliments him much better as a PG. They will build a great chemistry together and we already saw flashes of that in their last preseason game.

[DreDay]

Same with the off-ball game. He's been lauded for his scoring skillset off the ball since like 2010 - this isn't something new at all.

I agree with this to an extent - but there were a fair amount off people who watched him a lot who said that he mainly spotted up off the ball, ran off a pindown or set on ball screens. He was still effective off-ball due to his large gravity but he wasn't elite at it like say, a Curry who literally does everything when he doesn't have the ball in the hands. And from what I watched of OKC, I felt the same. For the most part it was a very simple, but effective, system there that didn't ask/require/encourage Durant to do much else when he didn't have the ball in the hand.

But from what I've seen in the 5 games this preseason, its completely different. Apart from the Toronto game Durant has been very active every second on the court, and he seems like he's maximising his potential of being that off-ball stud he was perceived to be for a long time.

[totallystoked]

It was embarrassing watching Durant and Brook fail so often and so badly at the end of games last season. Donovan did nothing to reign in westbrook or durant, and watching them force the action with no plan was an embarrassment to the game.

Durant has a real coach now, and he's on a real basketball TEAM. No more JV coach. A pg who is the exact opposite of brook's in-efficiency.

Durant has a new lease on his basketball life. Which is bad for league parity. And brook has a chance to win the award he truly cares most about: the individual MVP. But it destroys his chances of winning a championship.

This breakup reminds me a bit of a poor man's version of shaq and kobe splitting apart. Only brook won't get his championship and durant likely will.

Yup. Coaching is extremely important. That alone I believe will make Durant a better player in GSW. The gap between Kerr and Brooks/Donovan is huge. Durant is gonna learn a lot from Kerr. Regarding Russ, he is a great player but I think he was a bad fit for Durant. That's all. Steph compliments him much better as a PG. They will build a great chemistry together and we already saw flashes of that in their last preseason game.

Unfortunately for brook, I don't think he's a good complement to or for anyone. Durant should've been ideal. He's a catch and shoot player who doesn't need the ball in his hands most of the time. Durant is incredibly efficient.

Brook will mix like oil and water with any superstar caliber player. He's exactly in the situ he wants to be in: a situ which allows him to max out his own stats, but which unfortunately leaves him in a competitive no man's land: good enough to make the playoffs, but not good enough to win a championship and not bad enough to ever get a decent draft pick. OK will be a one man show/treadmill team while brook is in his statistical prime.

[Bergmaniac]

It's only preseason, calm down.

And Donovan outcoached Kerr in last season's playoffs and was a successful college coach for decades so these "Durant finally has a real coach" claims are a bit ridiculous.

[StepBackCrack]

It's only preseason, calm down.

And Donovan outcoached Kerr in last season's playoffs and was a successful college coach for decades so these "Durant finally has a real coach" claims are a bit ridiculous.

Donovan did a great job in the playoffs but he only coached OKC for one season. Durant suffered with terrible coaching for most of his career. OKC's FO was quite late in bringing a good/decent coach.

[spearsy23]

It's both incredibly exciting and incredibly deflating to see KD on the Dubs.

Having said that, KD had to make this decision. He wanted to play on an actual basketball team. Billy Donovan and Westbrook do not make for a basketball team.

Yeah, not gonna lie, I got kind of a deflating feeling in my stomach at a few points watching GS during preseason. Don't get me wrong, I'm having a great time watching them and its amazing basketball, and I'm rooting for them to succeed. But man. It doesn't seem fair, does it?

Such a weird feeling. Excited enjoyment, and being bummed out at the same time. Didn't expect to feel like this either. Of course I'm happy for KD and love that he made a decision for himself. And obviously its not written in stone that they'll win. But was watching one of the games and they were messing around, then at one point they just went super saiyan god and started wrecking shop, KD erasing the other team on defense and then bombing 3's with Steph and Klay, and I was like....damn, this is awesome, but it kinda sucks a little bit. And suddenly I started thinking back to something Lex Luthor said when Superman was moving a continent or something.

"No one should have this kind of power."

Didn't even get that feeling watching the Big 3 Heat. Again, don't mean at all to sound like I'm denigrating KD or the Warriors. I'm happy for both of them, and its going to be unbelievable television. But dude... something just wasn't sitting right. Didn't expect at all to feel that way, but yeah. I know what you mean.

That's our problem though. And it sure as hell won't stop me from tuning in every night and enjoying their success. Like all those guys and wish them the best.

Good post, and it would be nice if everyone had this approach as well.

Nice for whom?