Wednesday Bolts – 11.11.15
Anthony Slater: “On the night Kevin Durant returned to his native city, on the day hordes of media
peppered him with free agency questions, during the game most considered just a sideshow to the ‘KD2DC’ movement, the loudest cheer came, by far, when Steven Adams was at the free-throw line. Adams, the Thunder’s shot-challenged center, lined up to shoot a pair of foul shots midway through the fourth quarter. He missed the first. Then the scoreboard flashed ‘free Chick-Fil-A sandwich’ if Adams missed both. A loud murmur was followed by an Adams brick. The crowd erupted, its loudest burst of the night. There wasn’t much else to cheer about.”
Kent Babb of the Washington Post: “Durant has given plenty of that money away and also has a charitable foundation that works with young athletes from low-income backgrounds. In 2013 he donated $150,000 to three community organizations in his native Seat Pleasant, Md., and that same year Durant’s foundation contributed $1 million to the American Red Cross, following tornadoes that ripped through Oklahoma. All were acts of kindness, but in Durant’s ever-expanding world, someone will invariably feel left out. Brown, the National Christian coach, said he hasn’t spoken to Durant in years. But he said the star has not provided the school’s basketball program with so much as ‘a pair of shoes.'”
Brad Doolittle of ESPN Insider ranks KD the second best small forward: “Since Durant can raise up from the outside against anyone, it’s sometimes forgotten just how good he is off the bounce. Two years ago, Durant’s 1.06 points per drive was the best number of any player over the last three years, per SportVu.”
Scott Cacciola of the NY Times: “A deep dive into platitudes — taking one game at a time, focusing on the team — is the safe choice for an athlete of Durant’s magnitude approaching free agency. Others have lived more dangerously. Consider Carmelo Anthony. In October 2013, with a full season still to play for the Knicks, Anthony said he was already thinking about free agency, which was some nine months away.”
Kevin Pelton of ESPN Insider: “Based on this chart, Durant’s best chance of winning is staying in Oklahoma City. There’s a caveat, however — Westbrook’s own free agency in the summer of 2017, when power forward Serge Ibaka also can be an unrestricted free agent.”
Scott Allen of the Washington Post explains the KD2DC movement: “No, depending on which Kevin Durant translator you use, or how much you read into this new Nike T-shirt featuring Durant and D.C. imagery or Durant’s relationship with Oubre or Durant’s love of the Redskins or an anonymous NBA player saying he’s ‘pretty sure’ Durant will join the Wizards or rumors of P.G. County-themed Durant shoes or — dang, we write a lot about #KD2DC.”
