On one side, you have people who respect Kevin Durant’s decision to sign with the Golden State Warriors and give himself the best chance at winning a championship. On the other, there are those who think he took the easy way out and was afraid of adversity.
Washington Wizards forward Markieff Morris clearly belongs to the latter group.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Morris was critical of Durant for signing with the defending Western Conference champions.
“I don’t think it’s right, but it is what it is,” Morris said, via Gene Wang of The Washington Post.
When asked to clarify, Morris remained vague.
“You know what I mean by that. That ain’t right,” he reiterated. “The money is going to be there for anything. It’s not about that. It’s the whole situation. It’s like, man, come on. You don’t do that.”
Morris was then asked if he meant that Durant should not have left Oklahoma City. He says he disagrees more with Durant’s decision to join the team that came back from a 3-1 deficit to beat K.D.’s former team.
“I wouldn’t have went there [Golden State] for sure,” Morris said. “First of all, they just beat us, so that’s more important. It would have been a fire inside me to beat them next year, but a lot of guys are different. I just didn’t expect that from Durant. I know him a little bit, and I didn’t expect that.”
A lot of people feel the same way. Charles Barkley made similar remarks, although he exaggerated a bit and was bashed for it.
At the end of the day, Durant was a free agent and did what he felt was best for his career. He knows his legacy — like every other great player’s — will be measured in jewelry. In all likelihood, Durant was considering joining the Warriors long before they beat the Thunder in the Western Conference Finals. My guess is he simply stuck to the plan.
