Kevin Durant is going after Stephen A. Smith over his take on the superstar.
The bombastic ESPN personality said on “NBA Countdown” Saturday night that, if Durant fails to deliver a championship with the Nets while the Warriors win without him, he’ll eventually be known more for leaving Golden State than anything else. Durant took to Twitter to shoot back.
“Steve, since u decided to use ESPN to push your personal agendas, im sure your minions will run with this story for you,” Durant tweeted, “but if u believe this is what my career is defined by then you just a flat out hater. It’s gonna be hard to box the god in.”
Durant had also tweeted: “Egregious,” at Smith when he repeated the take earlier in the week.
Durant’s mom Wanda also hit back at Smith on Twitter on Saturday.
“You at it again with your limited-thinking-negative-narrative-baiting-comments; when will you show up better? More importantly, when will we grow tired of this foolishness?” she wrote.
Smith responded to Durant’s latest tweet Sunday morning, telling him to “stop the b.s.” He said he’s “not rooting” for the Durant narrative he says could happen but is “calling it like I see it.”
It’s certainly true that Durant’s move to Brooklyn isn’t going as planned. The Nets are struggling to gain traction and the future of their Big 3 is in question. James Harden is at the center of trade rumors, including that he could be dealt to the Sixers, and Kyrie Irving is unable to play home games due to New York City’s vaccine mandate.
Meanwhile, the Warriors sit in second in the Western Conference and look like championship contenders again minus Durant, who won two titles with Golden State before joining Irving in Brooklyn in free agency.
Smith did say it would be unfair for commentators to treat the dichotomy as a reflection on KD, but noted that they would nonetheless. And though no one has won anything yet, it’s easy to imagine Durant being at the center of the story if the Warriors do manage to bring the title back to the Bay Area.
After he left the team in 2019, they initially fell out of the playoff race thanks to a slew of injuries. But last year they made the play-in game, and with Klay Thompson back and a rejuvenated roster this year, they look like their old selves.