Kevin Durant on Criticism Towards Russell Westbrook: ‘Dialog Around Our Game is Just so Toxic’
It feels like it was just yesterday when Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook led their 2016 Oklahoma City Thunder team to one win short of an NBA Finals berth.
Scratching that championship quest was the Golden State Warriors, who came back down 3-1 in the Western Conference Finals against the Thunder. A stunning turn of events in the series led to Durant departing from Oklahoma City, to join that same Dubs squad.
Forming a Big 4 in San Francisco with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, Durant dealt with his own criticism when he made the move. Now, KD has shared his thoughts on the negativity surrounding his former teammate for Westbrook’s recent play with the Los Angeles Lakers.
“The dialog around our game is just so toxic at this point,” said Durant on the ETCs podcast. “I get criticism [on the court] but it’s starting to turn into something else now.”
At age 33, Westbrook averaged 18.5 points, the third lowest average in his career. While the Lakers’ performance last season wasn’t entirely on Westbrook, critics (and haters on the internet) have placed a lot of the blame on him.
“When you’re playing alongside the biggest figure in L.A in LeBron James everything you do is gonna be magnified,” said Durant. “…If people don’t trust that your team is gonna be good…you have to be on point every time.”
Both Westbrook and Durant, as of now, have remained with their respective team’s of last season, but the expectations they are assumed to bring to the table remain.
Photo via Getty Images.
