Draymond Green believes NBA fans will appreciate the Warriors team with Kevin Durant in the future. He could not be farther from the truth
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The Golden State Warriors traumatized the league between 2016-2019. The addition of Kevin Durant made the 73-9 team absolutely unbeatable in the playoffs. It was arguably the greatest assembly of shooters in NBA history. There was no answer for the Splash Bros from beyond the arc and Kevin Durant from mid-range all-in-one team.
KD and Curry sacrificed several individual accolades to play together and ensure what counts the most in the end, a championship. However, the Warriors faced a lot of criticism for signing the 2013 MVP. In all likelihood, KD thought he could get away with it within a year or two like LBJ after he parted with Cleveland Cavaliers to join Dwyane Wade‘s Miami Heat.
The hate however continued the whole time he played with Golden State. The only team that even came close to beating the Warriors was Houston Rockets in 2018. The ultimate demise happened in 2019 when Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson suffered serious injuries in the playoffs and Kawhi Leonard‘s Toronto Raptors defeated the dynasty in 6 games in the 2019 Finals.
It is safe to say no one misses the Golden State Warriors with Kevin Durant
Signing with the team that came back down 3-1 against him earned Kevin Durant his nickname ‘The Snake’. Although it wasn’t the first super-team experiment in NBA, having 4 All-Stars in your starting lineup can never be fair to other teams. The move was criticized by fans and players alike.
Draymond Green, however, thinks people will come around sooner or later.
“Everybody criticized it, everybody criticized Kevin everybody criticized us. They didn’t appreciate it. But people usually don’t appreciate greatness until they no longer have it. We appreciated it. And that’s all that matters”.
The reality is quite opposite. NBA fans rejoiced when Kevin Durant signed with Brooklyn Nets as a free agent in 2019. The league was balanced once again and it was impossible to predict who would make it to the finals. The Golden State Warriors paved the way for other superstars to come together and form a super team.
There’s no denying that the Golden State Warriors were one of the greatest assemblies in the history of the NBA. Having two of the top 5 players active players can do wonders but no one outside the Dubnation will ever appreciate it.
After 2 years, the Warriors are thriving once again, sitting at the very top of the NBA. Stephen Curry defeated his former teammate Kevin Durant in a blowout manner Tuesday night making a strong case for MVP. He leads the league in scoring and the Warriors look like serious contenders with Klay Thompson and James Wiseman still sidelined.
