Understandably so, the Oklahoma City Thunder and their remaining All-Star, Russell Westbrook, are a little butt hurt over this whole Kevin Durant leaving town thing. And it’s turned into a full-fledged “he said, he said” type of situation now to try and help figure out what in the fuck actually happened.
As we wrote yesterday, ESPN reported that KD actually told Russ that he was going to re-sign in OKC and give it at least one more crack at winning a title together. However, when Durant got word of that little info, he was quick to call bullshit:
via The Vertical:
“It’s false,” Durant told The Vertical on Thursday. “I didn’t say that – words about me telling Russell or Nick that I would stay or leave never came out of my mouth. We met as teammates, but no promises came out of it. In this day and age, I can’t control anything people claim out there. Someone can go out and say something random right now, and people will believe it.
“I never told Russell or Nick [Collison], ‘All right, guys, I’m coming back to the Thunder’ – and then a week later, I decide not to. Never happened. I don’t operate like that. I heard people say that story, but it’s not the truth.”
“There were never promises given in a meeting before July,” he told The Vertical. “I went through the process.”
That’s straight from the horse’s mouth, guys—so take that for what it’s worth.
Durant also addressed his role with his new Golden State team, saying this regarding questions about his role with the Dubs, via The Vertical:
“I’m not coming in trying to play the point guard, trying to play the shooting guard. I’m a small forward. The team didn’t have a small forward when I signed. Steph, Klay, Draymond, the bigs, we all play different positions.
“Whether it’s minutes, shots, opportunities, any good team will have players sacrificing. That’s the nature of the game. I’m not coming into a game saying that I need my 18 shots and I need to get to the line 12 times. I let the game flow naturally.”
Becoming the fourth All-Star in Golden State’s starting five, Durant seems to have made the right call in chasing a championship by jetting from OKC—even if that does mean he may have led on his former mates.