NBA superstar Kevin Durant finds himself in a spot ahead of the All-Star weekend. The two-time champion chooses Rudy Gobert over his former Nets teammate James Harden.
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The James Harden–Ben Simmons trade has sent shock waves across the league. With the deal taking place a few hours before the All-Star draft, Kevin Durant was in for some tough questioning as he assembled his team for ASG in Cleveland.
Unfortunately, Durant will not be present for the annual event as he recovers from an MCL sprain. However, as captain, KD fulfilled his responsibility of constructing the team, having Joel Embiid as his first pick. The following represent Team Durant.
#TeamDurant is locked in 🔒#NBAAllStar | @Nike pic.twitter.com/0YBY3brCki
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 11, 2022
During the last stage of selection, Durant found himself in an embarrassing moment, having everyone, including Captain LeBron James in splits. The four-time scoring champion was asked to choose between Rudy Gobert and former Nets teammate Harden, with KD going for the Jazz center.
The cast of Inside the NBA and LBJ cannot put up a straight face as Durant makes his choice between Gobert and Harden.
Kevin Durant picks Rudy Gobert over James Harden as his final pick in the 2022 NBA ASG.
With only a few hours into the Harden-Simmons deal, Durant appeared on Inside the NBA as captain for the upcoming All-Star game. The selection process began smoothly, with both Durant and James going according to their respective plan.
However, Durant would find himself in a situation where he had to choose between Gobert and Harden while selecting the last of the reserves. KD went with Gobert saying the following.
“I’m gonna need some size in the interior, especially with Giannis and LeBron James playing such great basketball this year. I need somebody to offset that, so I’m gonna go with Rudy Gobert.”
Despite KD being able to hold himself during the hilarious moment, the cast of Inside the NBA and James would burst into a series of laughter. To top it all, LeBron would question if Harden was healthy to play, and Charles Barkley’s reply had everyone in splits.
“Oh, he (Harden) got traded, he’s healthy now,” said the Chuckster.
LeBron couldn’t keep it together after KD picked Gobert over Harden 😅#NBAAllStar | @Nike pic.twitter.com/2wS1U8t7sE
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 11, 2022
Luckily for LeBron, he carried a clipboard and was seen hiding his laughter with it, which host Ernie Johnson thought would be a great technique for KD too.
Despite the banter going on, KD managed to control his laughter as he begins a new chapter with the Nets.