Courtesy of kevindurant.com
On July 4, former National Basketball Association MVP and seven-time All-Star Kevin Durant announced his decision to move from Oklahoma City to the golden state of California. He penned a letter thanking Thunder fans for their support and told them that he was leaving to get out of his “comfort zone.” Durant meant to say that he was leaving to win championships.
In 2007, Kevin Durant was drafted by the Seattle Supersonics and stayed with the organization as it relocated to Oklahoma City in 2008. Durant became the face of the Oklahoma City Thunder and the city put him on a pedestal. During his tenure there, Durant scored a mind-blowing 17,566 points for OKC and led the team to its first championship in 2012, where they eventually lost 4-1 to the Miami Heat. That year, the Heat rode to victory on the back of the “Big Three”: Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James. The Thunder simply could not compete with the superstar lineup that Miami had assembled as cries of unfairness rang throughout the league. Winning does not come to those who wait.
On July 8, 2010, just two years prior, ESPN aired a 75-minute special titled “The Decision,” during which LeBron James, the patron saint of Cleveland, announced that he would be taking his talents to South Beach. James, much like Durant and Oklahoma City, had built his career from the ground up in Cleveland, earning himself back-to-back National Basketball Association MVP awards in 2009 and 2010. He was born in Akron, a smaller city outside of Cleveland, and became a larger than life hero to fans of the Cavaliers. But James wanted more than just adoration: He wanted to win. After announcing his move to the Miami Heat, he cited his desire to win championships as the reason for his departure. That offseason, Miami tried to sell Chris Bosh and James on the idea of teaming up with Dwyane Wade and making a dream team. He couldn’t say no. LeBron James decided that winning was more important than loyalty to his city. Is that wrong? Should MVP caliber players always put their fans before winning titles?
The simple answer is no. Sports fans tend to romanticize the players and teams they follow. They watch players like Derek Jeter with the Yankees and Kobe Bryant with the Lakers and fall in love with the idea of loyal players staying at one team for their entire careers. And why shouldn’t they? Representing your city for years and becoming a sports legend there is as American as apple pie. But step back and consider the success that both Derek Jeter and Kobe Bryant have had at their respective organizations and the choices that James, and now Durant, have committed seem more understandable. Jeter was a five-time World Champion and Bryant was a five-time NBA Champion. See the connection? If James were winning titles with Cleveland would he have left? No. He has said in the past that he wanted to win and that’s why he ended up in Miami. While the LeBron James jersey-burning parties seem a little ridiculous now, they speak to how highly respected he was there. But James, believe it or not, is still human. He isn’t a god. He can’t win the MVP award every year and, most importantly, he can’t just win a championship whenever he wants. LeBron James made a choice: He chose to put winning before the fans of Cleveland, and he had every right to make that decision. He doesn’t owe the people of Cleveland anything. He was simply a good basketball player who made a career choice.
For some perspective as to how idealistic American sports fans have become, look no further than the world of European soccer. During the 2015 English Premier League summer transfer window, powerhouse Manchester City signed Raheem Sterling, an English national team winger who had spent the entirety of his professional career at Liverpool after debuting there in 2012, for $64.5 million. Moves like this are common throughout Europe: Players leave teams every year in hopes of contending for titles. Sterling left Liverpool because they were not winning championships. If Manchester City is consistently in the hunt for the EPL Championship and Sterling wants to win, then doesn’t the move seem logical? Or should he have stayed at Liverpool and been satisfied with fourth- and fifth-place finishes while keeping the fans happy?
Talking heads around the league are going to call Kevin Durant’s move unfair. They’ll say that the Golden State Warriors are trying to stack their team (But really, who isn’t?). There isn’t a team in the NBA that wouldn’t have taken Durant in a heartbeat. Durant has his own set of goals and priorities over which fans have no control. If his ultimate goal is to be an NBA Champion, so be it. Maybe Westbrook will step up next year. Maybe they’ll find a new superstar to lead the team. In the end, it doesn’t matter. Kevin Durant, just like LeBron James before him, wants to win. If Durant feels that he has a better chance of winning an NBA championship alongside Klay Thompson and Steph Curry at Golden State, why should anyone stop him from pursuing that dream?
