Kobe Bryant has played horribly this season, but Kevin Durant does not feel that the five-time NBA champion’s poor play warrants the criticism he has received in the media.
When asked on Monday about Bryant announcing his decision to retire at the end of the season, Durant went off on the media for the way they have treated Kobe.
“I’ve been disappointed this year because you guys (media) treated him like sh–,” Durant said, via Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. “He’s a legend and all I hear is about how bad he’s playing, how bad he’s shooting, time for him to hang it up. You guys treated one of our legends like sh– and I didn’t really like it. Hopefully now you can start being nice to him now that he decided to retire after this year.”
We’re just guessing here, but it sounds like Durant probably doesn’t appreciate that hilarious NBA Jam mashup that someone created to mock Kobe earlier this season.
“It was sad the way he was getting treated. He had just an amazing career, a guy who changed the game for me as a player mentally and physically,” Durant added. “Means so much to the game of basketball. Someone I’m always gonna look to advice for anything. Just a brilliant, brilliant, intelligent man. Sad to see him go. He put his mark on the game.”
Those were some nice words from Durant, and his sentiments are shared by a lot of other players. Unfortunately, it feels like Bryant has stuck around a little too long. He has already left his mark on the game, and some of the shots we have seen him take recently are downright embarrassing. We just hope Kobe can string together a few more memorable moments before hanging it up for good.
