When Kevin Durant joined the Houston Rockets in 2025, he had just one thing in mind: win the championship. It’s what has eluded him since his days with Stephen Curry, and now heading towards the twilight of his career, it’s literally crunch time. That said, he’s not the same Durant he was a decade ago.
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Yes, Durant at 37 is still one of the purest scorers in the league, averaging 25 ppg on close to 50/40/90 shooting splits. His team, the Rockets, are also 41-27 and are most definitely headed to the playoffs. But many would agree that they don’t really look like contenders in a stacked Western Conference.
At this point, analysts like Tom Haberstroh are beginning to feel bad for Durant. After all, it’s been nine years since he won his last championship, and still, many don’t see it as something he could have done without Curry or the Warriors. Durant also failed in Brooklyn and Phoenix, and if Haberstroh is right, he will also leave Houston with an empty bag.
“Just emotionally, I don’t see how Kevin Durant, at 37 years old, can be expected to carry this team down the stretch,” Haberstroh said on The Kevin O’Connor Show. “Most times, you’re injured like Stephen Curry is, at this point in your career. You cannot be considered to carry this team every time down the floor.”
So far this season, Durant has managed to play in 65 out of the Rockets’ 68 games. This is to say that injuries haven’t been an issue for him. But it’s a mindful thing to consider at this point in the season, given his age.
“Look, he’s Kevin Durant, he’s one of the 10 best players of all-time. But at this point, maybe I’m just like, I don’t know, on some level I feel bad for the guy,” Haberstroh added.
Haberstroh feels bad for KD finding himself in this precarious Rockets situation … I don’t. https://t.co/gIIIYn39PT pic.twitter.com/GbdEGbjGBK
— Kevin O’Connor (@KevinOConnor) March 21, 2026
It’s certainly been an unfortunate stretch of seasons for Durant. He’s tried to make it work with two different teams since he left Golden State—Phoenix and Brooklyn—but to no avail. Many are wondering if he’s ever going to win another championship. However, at the same time, it’s hard to feel too bad for Durant.
“He did sign up for it, Tom. He’s made mistake after mistake. Even signing with the Warriors was a mistake, because he went to a team that won 73 games and just had a 3-1 comeback against your own team. And you know, going into that situation, even if you win championships, even if you play as magnificently as he did…
“You even know if that’s going to happen, people are going to take that away from you,” O’Connor stated.
It’s hard to disagree with the analyst. Durant lost a ton of respect from many NBA fans when he left the OKC Thunder in the summer of 2016. Not because he left, but because of the team he decided to go to.
Ever since then, reports of Durant being a bad teammate have popped up everywhere he’s gone. Videos of him and Draymond Green getting into it during games surfaced throughout his time in Golden State. In Brooklyn, he had repeated altercations with the front office, demanding firings of their head coach and general manager.
Of course, the most famous part of Durant’s drama is his burner accounts on X. The future Hall of Famer has been accused several times of using fake accounts online to trash-talk his teammates and coaches.
All in all, O’Connor is more in the right than Haberstroh. If some fans want to feel bad for Durant because he struggles to win, that’s okay. But it’s not the popular sentiment. Many believe that he’s deserved a lot of what’s occurred in his career, and that he’s really changed ever since he left the Thunder.
