Kevin Durant’s offseason move to the Houston Rockets has been a great success so far. Despite losing starting point guard Fred VanVleet to a torn ACL this offseason, the team is off to an 11-4 start while sporting the second-best offensive rating and fifth-best defensive rating in the NBA.
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Durant has looked at home with the Rockets’ young core from the jump. It’s a stark contrast to how disjointed the Suns looked last year before blowing the team up. It’s also been heartening to see the legend finally find a home after bouncing around the league so much.
Durant has said that he wants to finish his career in Houston, and the instant chemistry he’s found with his new teammates is a big reason why. In a fun new episode of his Boardroom podcast, he gave a glimpse into that chemistry by taking on Amen Thompson in a game of NBA2K26.
It’s fair to wonder what the 37-year-old Durant and the 22-year-old Thompson have in common other than an abiding love for hoops, and the easy yet hilarious answer is: digital hoops. Durant is a lifelong gamer and it has helped him connect with this younger generation.
On the podcast, he explained why he loves 2K so much. “I just think 2K and culture has come such a long way in how people consume the game,” he said. “I think 2K is another one of those ways to get close to basketball and feel like you’re a part of the sport. Everything is to a T — how the arena looks, how the players look, the signature moves.”
“If you want to be immersed in the game virtually, it’s perfect,” he continued. “All the players play it. 2K is life.”
Unfortunately for KD, his edge in experience didn’t help him against his up-and-coming teammate, as Thompson beat him by 14 in their game. He wasn’t ready to throw in the towel over just one L, though. “We got more games to play, bro, don’t even trip,” he said. “I’ll take 0-1. Eighty-two game season.”
Thompson rubbed it in a bit, saying, “I’m not gonna lie, I did call this in the locker room. I can’t say I didn’t see this coming. I wanna be humble and say I didn’t, but I did see this coming.”
Since its debut in 1999, 2K has played an integral role in building team chemistry around the league, and it looks like it’s having a positive effect on the Rockets, too. The season is still young, but they’re looking like a serious contender.
