Oklahoma City Thunder fans apparently know how to hold a grudge.
Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns were in town on Sunday for a game against the Thunder. The game marked a return to OKC for Durant, who played the first nine seasons of his career with their franchise. But Durant infamously left to sign with the Golden State Warriors in 2016, earning him the searing wrath of Thunder fans everywhere.
That didn’t change one bit on Sunday as Durant was heavily booed when he was introduced in pregame warmups. Here is the video.
Loud boos for KD in OKC pic.twitter.com/fUPOucc2N8
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) April 2, 2023
It was fair game for OKC fans to jeer Durant when he was on the Warriors and winning NBA titles there. In fact, Durant was mercilessly trolled by the Thunder faithful when he first returned to their building in 2017. But nearly seven years have gone by since Durant left, and he is on his third different team since then. In fact, so much time has passed that the Thunder have an entirely new roster with a new coach in Mark Daigneault and a new identity based around All-Star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the rest of their fresh, young core. GM Sam Presti and the Thunder ownership group might be all that remains of the Durant era.
Durant and the Suns would have the last laugh on Sunday, winning 128-118 as the superstar forward notched a team-high 35 points. But it sounds like Durant’s vision of being honored by the Thunder after retirement may be more of a fantasy than a reality at this point.
