A lot has been said about the change in attitude for Kevin Durant since leaving the Oklahoma City Thunder for the Golden State Warriors. The biggest claims are that Durant has become more surly and less respectful in interviews and comments that he makes. A huge example was when he told fans that if they didn’t like “super teams” like the Golden State Warriors, they could just change the channel and stop watching the NBA – something that had to rub the men who pay him to promote the NBA the wrong way.
However, in a recent interview with Bill Simmons, Kevin Durant was very respectful of a player that he just played against in the NBA Finals.
At the same time, Durant used a player that is a legend in Kevin’s hometown of Washington, D.C., as a comparison. Durant said that Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers is a better player than NBA legend Allen Iverson.
The NBA: Old vs. New
This is the type of argument that has been gaining steam over the years. LeBron James vs. Michael Jordan is where this really started. While there are many people who feel Jordan is the best player of all time, there are more who believe that LeBron is better than Jordan was – despite winning fewer titles. This is a huge argument that has people split down the middle. However, until Kevin Durant mentioned it, there was really no one who was saying Kyrie Irving is better than Allen Iverson was.
Kevin Durant said that Kyrie Irving is better when it comes to skill for skill. Durant pointed out that Kyrie has better ball handling skills. Durant then seemed to think twice about the comments and asked Bill Simmons to cut that part out because he doesn’t want any problems with Allen Iverson. Unfortunately for Durant, it wasn’t cut out and the comments were made public.
Kyrie Irving has averaged 21.6 points, 5.6 assists, and 3.4 rebounds. He has also won an NBA Championship. Allen Iverson averaged 26.7 points, 6.2 assists, and 3.7 rebounds. Iverson never won an NBA title but he was named MVP in 2001.
Kyrie Irving’s talent
When it comes to Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant said after his Golden State Warriors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games that watching Irving play makes a person happy.
Durant said you just have to smile when watching someone as skilled as Kyrie playing the game and his skills are what any parent should try to teach their kids.
Kevin Durant continued on and said that he has never seen anyone block a layup by Kyrie Irving, who stands 6-2. Durant said that Irving has a spin move and never even looks and it is something that no one can block. Kevin talked about how much respect he has for Irving because he has to work so hard just to compare to Kyrie.
