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“The fact is Kevin Durant has more hardware than Charles Barkley!”: Stephen A. Smith and JJ Redick argue over feud between NBA legend and Nets superstar

Arun Sharma
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"The fact is Kevin Durant has more hardware than Charles Barkley!": Stephen A. Smith and JJ Redick argue over feud between NBA legend and Nets superstar

Charles Barkley v Kevin Durant – old head vs present gen – the kind of a matchup that will never go out of style.

Kevin Durant is not a guy to shy away from controversy – he is no Kawhi Leonard when it comes to speaking his mind online. The Brooklyn Nets man has been actively picking fights with a lot of the old basketball players, just because they put his achievements down.

Playing in a team with Steph Curry and Klay Thompson will always diminish the impact, however great it might be. Despite being a 2-time finals MVP in back-to-back seasons, and putting up legendary numbers, he has always been called Steph Curry’s lackey. There is nothing wrong with that, provided Steph outshone him, But it was just the opposite.

Charles Barkley seems to be one of the guys who has been behind this narrative – never accepting the 2 rings Kevin Durant won. If KD was a freeloader on his way to those championships, people can understand. Barkley never won a championship, but he seems to be salty that KD is more successful than he ever was.

Also Read: “Charles Barkley couldn’t be more wrong on Kevin Durant!”: JJ Redick offers his unwavering support for Brooklyn Nets star

Kevin Durant deserves more respect – his championships were earned like every other one – he was not just a bystander

Narratives have been formed when it comes to certain players – Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Russell Westbrook for example. Even after retiring, people don’t agree Michael Jordan’s championships were won with help, but the modern-day player must do it alone. How can you do it alone, when Basketball is a team game. If they played iso ball all night, they’d be bullied for that as well.

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Stephen A. Smith and JJ Redick have been on this debate for three straight days now, and both the analysts think each person was correct in their own right. JJ thinks Durant needs to be respected more, and his retort is warranted. Getting money into it is a bit off-topic, but the overall sentiment is still the same.

SAS also felt the same way, which is unusual for a man with such polarizing opinions. He was muted, subdued, and vocal about the topic for a change, and was respectful about other people’s opinions as well. When he is in this mood, you know you are wrong. Hope you watch the video, Chuck cos even the maddest reporter out there has called you wrong.

Also Read: “Charles Barkley can’t accept we making more bread than them”: Kevin Durant blasts TNT analyst for his terrible analogy

About the author

Arun Sharma

Arun Sharma

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Arun Sharma is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. A double degree holder and a digital marketer by trade, Arun has always been a sports buff. He fell in love with the sport of basketball at a young age and has been a Lakers fan since 2006. What started as a Kobe Bryant obsession slowly turned into a lifelong connection with the purple and gold. Arun has been an ardent subscriber to the Mamba mentality and has shed tears for a celebrity death only once in his life. He believes January 26, 2020, was the turning point in the passage of time because Kobe was the glue holding things together. From just a Lakers bandwagoner to a basketball fanatic, Arun has spent 16 long years growing up along with the league. He thinks Stephen Curry has ruined basketball forever, and the mid-range game is a sight to behold. Sharma also has many opinions about football (not the American kind), F1, MotoGP, tennis, and cricket.

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