Kevin Durant last night spoke about how it is difficult for young players to adjust when they come and play with LeBron, one because of his aura and his game style and two because of how the media treats LeBron.
Advertisement
The media tends to make everything about LeBron, something that hampers the confidence of any star playing alongside him and makes the environment around him a little too toxic for comfort.
“If you’re Kyle Korver, then it makes sense. Because Kyle Korver in Atlanta was the bulk of the offense, and he’s not a No. 1 option at all, not even close. So his talents benefit more from a guy who can pass and penetrate and get him open.
“If you’re a younger player like a Kawhi, trying to pair him with LeBron James doesn’t really make sense. Kawhi enjoys having the ball in his hands, controlling the offense, dictating the tempo with his post-ups; it’s how he plays the game. A lot of young players are developing that skill. They don’t need another guy.” KD had said speaking about how LeBron’s game play could affect another young super star joining him.
But the problem is deeper, as it is not only what happens on court but also what happens off it.
LeBron becomes the centre of attraction, with everything that he does becoming news, something that could cause a little issue with another superstar coming in and playing alongside LeBron.
“So much hype comes from being around LeBron from other people. He has so many fanboys in the media. Even the beat writers just fawn over him. I’m like, we’re playing basketball here, and it’s not even about basketball at certain points.
“So I get why anyone wouldn’t want to be in that environment because it’s toxic. Especially when the attention is bullsh** attention, fluff. It’s not LeBron’s fault at all; it’s just the fact you have so many groupies in the media that love to hang on every word. Just get out of the way and let us play basketball.” Durant explained.
Now, LeBron James was asked about KD’s comments today and if he wanted to respond and explain why KD feels that the environment around LeBron could get toxic.
LeBron though was pretty circumspect before releasing a full statement, saying that he first needed to read the entire transcript of Durant’s interview and understand the context in which he said it and the context in which the question was presented to him.
Until LeBron does that, he will not release a full statement regarding what KD said last night.
Having played in the NBA for long, LeBron knows how to deal with the media and took the veery wise decision of doing his homework before coming out with any statements.
But what do you think LeBron would say? Is the media attention on him really too toxic for any star that plays alongside him? Or are players mature enough to separate the on court and the off court life?
