Kevin Durant’s greatness gets overlooked, and it’s time for that to stop.
He often gets overshadowed for playing in LeBron James’ era, or gets scrutinized for his constant formation of super teams.
Some people find him simply unlikeable, due to his social media antics, or fans find his game boring compared to someone like Steph Curry.
But, the truth is, that at age 32, Kevin Durant is the best player in the NBA, and there’s not much to debate about.
Last night’s game 5 performance reminded everyone how good Durant still is, as he put together one of the greatest playoff performances of all time. Durant single-handily resurrected the Nets from a 17-point deficit, and to a 3-2 series lead in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals.
Durant played the whole game, scoring 45 points on 19-26 shooting. He added 17 rebounds, 10 assists, three steals, and two blocks. The Nets were short-handed without Kyrie Irving, and a hobbled James Harden, but Durant delivered in the biggest way possible. The Bucks had no answer to Durant, as he racked up 31 second-half points, scoring at-will.
Durant becomes the first player to play an entire playoff game since LeBron did so in the 2018 NBA Finals.
This playoff performance was very reminiscent of LeBron James’ performance in game 6 of the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals. James propelled the Miami Heat past the Boston Celtics with 45 points on 19-26 shooting, with 15 rebounds. Many called that game the changing of the guard in the NBA. It was the cherry on top of LeBron James’ quest to become the best player in the world.
Last night’s performance from Durant will publicly be known as the changing of the guard, as Durant overtook LeBron James for the league’s best player. But, the truth is, Durant's been the league’s best player for the last few years. If it hadn’t been for Durant’s achilles injury, he’d have another ring, winning 3 consecutive championships.
It’s impossible to deny how good of a scorer Durant is, as he has come through in the clutch time-and-time again.
Since leaving the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2016, Durant has averaged 30.2 points per game, on 51.5 % shooting.
Last night, all of Kevin Durant’s doubters took a major L .
He put on one of the prolific performances in playoff history, and he did it alone.
Say what you want about him, but he’s the best player in the NBA, and will go down as one of the best scorers in NBA history.