Klay Thompson has provided an explicit assessment of how the Golden State Warriors were fending off a contrasting narrative in the span of two years, following the acquisition of former MVP and four-time scoring champion Kevin Durant.
Advertisement
The Slim Reaper joined the Warriors in the off-season of 2016 during free agency. The decision by ‘KD’ saw his stalwart supporters in Oklahoma break their allegiance with him.
Nonetheless, it is understandable that a move of such gravity would warrant such a reaction given the player’s stature.
Not to mention, Durant’s decision to leave behind the franchise that drafted him, for the very organization that rendered their championship aspirations obsolete, didn’t sit well with the Thunder supporters. Suffice it to say, they were furious.
At the very least, his relationship with the supporters could have been repaired in due course, had he joined any other franchise apart from the Warriors.
It’s no surprise that the fans were aggravated, given the fact that he joined, conceivably the greatest team to set foot on an NBA court. The Dubs’ Shooting guard’, Klay Thompson has highlighted exactly how the franchise was viewed in the wake of Durant’s arrival.
Klay Thompson speaks on the narrative of the Warriors franchise!
The Golden State Warriors were considered the underdogs back in 2015 when they were merely getting started. Implementing an entire structure that revolved around ensuring Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson get enough looks from beyond the arc.
As such, they became an overnight sensation when their roster began succeeding. However the addition of the twelve-time All-Star in 2016, the franchise were ousted as the villains from the get-go.
Speaking about the changing narrative, four-time NBA champion Klay Thompson has provided his insight into how the narrative changed drastically for the worse for the San Francisco-based franchise.
Thompson stated–
“I thought, ‘Oh, it’s over here’. I knew everybody would be so mad. We went from like little darlings in 2015, to like somewhat hated in 2016, but 2017 is just outright pure hate.”
Quite an interesting perception from someone who was involved in the scene firsthand.
The Golden State Warriors triumph since Durant’s departure.
Having won two NBA titles in three years, Durant departed from the Warriors for the Brooklyn Nets in 2019.
The Brooklyn Nets have since not experienced any success. Ironically, the Warriors have since won a championship as recently as this year. A magnificent achievement given that everyone counted them out.
