Kevin Durant has grown this year, sort of.
The NBA sent a memo to teams telling them they needed to certify players’ ages and heights. The crackdown came after Buddy Hield was revealed to be older than his previously listed age.
The New York Daily News’ Stefan Bondy reported on Sunday that as part of this crackdown, Durant’s height was changed from 6-foot-9 to 6-foot-10.
A lot has been made of Kevin Durant’s true height. This year the NBA forced teams to certify the measurements. So how much did Durant grow? Only one inch. The Nets are listing him at 6-10.
— Stefan Bondy (@SBondyNYDN) October 6, 2019
KD had long been listed as 6-foot-9 on his player profiles even though it was widely recognized that he was taller.
Here are some old tweets about the matter:
Any other NBA writers find themselves avoiding writing Kevin Durant's height because he's clearly at least 6-11, but you know your copy eds are going to change it to 6-9 since that's his listed height?
— Connor Letourneau (@Con_Chron) October 1, 2018
Durant had been perpetuating the myth that he was 6-foot-9.
Kevin Durant says "I'm a legit 6-8" when asked about his listed 6-9 height. He continues to refuse to own up to being at least 6-10.
— Darnell Mayberry (@DarnellMayberry) March 2, 2014
Why did he lie about his height? Durant explained in an interview with KNBR’s Bob Fitzgerald.
“Since I love you guys so much, I was recorded at 6’10” and three-quarters with no shoes, so with my shoes on I’m 7-feet,” Durant told Fitzgerald. “I just like messin’ with people. They just ask me so much… yeah, I just like messin’ with people.
“For me, when I’m talking to women, I’m 7 feet. In basketball circles, I’m 6-9.
“I’ve always thought it was cool to say I’m a 6-9 small forward,” he said. “Really, that’s the prototypical size for a small forward. Anything taller than that, and they’ll start saying, ‘Ah, he’s a power forward.’ ”
So there you have it. Durant is officially listed at 6-foot-10 now, but still may be closer to 6-foot-11, and probably 7-feet tall with shoes on.
I could understand lying about height if you’re this guy, but there does not seem to be much meaningful reason for Durant to do it.
