Tor_Raps wrote:Marvin Martian wrote:Tor_Raps wrote:The Brooklyn one wasn't really his fault and the Phoenix one is tough... CP got hurt last year and Beal was absolutely pathetic this year.
He's never been a true leader in the same way Kawhi has never been a true leader. It doesn't mean that he isn't a killer on the court. Dude came off an Achilles injury looking much better than anyone thought he'd be. I don't really pin any of the failures on him.
Brooklyn was his fault. Moreso than this one. In Brooklyn, he was the GM, leader, and franchise player. When his team was swept by BOS, he demanded a trade before the ink was dry on his 4 year extension.
He demanded the trade because Harden hardly played and then they traded for Simmons who has been a joke. Let's not forget the whole Kyrie drama where he was in and out of the lineup because he felt like it lol.
Even with the trade demand, Durant still played great ball and were looking like the best team in the east before Kyrie said screw it all and trade me now lol.
They would've won in Brooklyn if not for the Kyrie and Harden injuries. People in this thread are acting like they lost healthy. They were convincingly up 2-0 on the Bucks, lost Kyrie in game 4 and still almost won the series. He only demanded a trade after Kyrie did (and they'd be left with nothing because they traded for Ben Simmons). I'm not sure why youd blame an aging superstar who came back from a torn achilles for wanting out in that scenario? They were good that season too, they still made the playoffs on the back of their record with KD/Kyrie which led to people thinking Mikal Bridges was a star in the making.
In OKC, injuries and poor roster construction cost him titles. They were the best team in the league in 2013 but pat bev took out Westbrook in the first round. They were arguably better than the spurs in 2014 but had the Ibaka injury and no depth. KD was out in 2015 and then in 2016 their Iso style and lack of spacing couldn't get them one more win vs golden state, after dispatching the 60 win spurs in the WCSF.
In Phoenix, he's past his prime unfortunately. Their depth has been embarrassing, especially last year, and they just aren't a good enough team.
All this to say, there have been clear reasons for
KD led teams to not have won titles outside of Golden State. Mostly injuries to main pieces and bizarrely poorly constructed rosters. He's not going to wind up as a top 10 all time great with how it's all played out, but things really could've been different pretty easily.