NBA News Roundup: Kevin Durant slams critics for ignoring his achievements before Warriors move, Luka Doncic balls out for Slovenian national team, and more | June 26th, 2022
Kevin Durant has dominated the NBA's recent storylines due to his uncertain future with the Brooklyn Nets. He has also drawn a lot of attention for his antics on Twitter.
The former MVP recently vented his frustrations towards critics for not appreciating his career before his move to the Golden State Warriors. His trade to the Dubs back in 2016 wasn't well-received by NBA fans.
Meanwhile, Luka Doncic has been working hard this offseason. The Dallas Mavericks superstar was in the news due to a viral video of him dominating a friendly game for the Slovenian national team against Italy.
Let's look at the latest NBA news as of June 26th, 2022.
Kevin Durant slams critics; says he is treated like a six-year veteran
Kevin Durant has been one of the most criticized superstars in the NBA. Several fans believe KD opted to take an easy route to win a ring by joining a franchise that was arguably the best team in the league at the time. Durant left the Dubs in 2019, and the Warriors have once again won a title without him.
The 33-year-old forward has been slammed by critics again after he failed to lead Brooklyn to a title win before the Warriors.
However, Durant hasn't hesitated to indulge in a back and forth with fans and NBA analysts. The two-time Finals MVP took a dig at his critics during a recent appearance on his podcast, 'The ETC's with KD,' Durant said:
"That's why I be feeling like y'all just be hating on a god. What have I done for you to want to discredit everything? I put in a lot of work for this game. I been at it for 15, 16 years. You'll think I'm a six-year veteran in the league the way people talk about me. Like I ain't did s**t before I went to Golden State."
He went on to question how many people really watched him during his days with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Durant explained that he has always played at an elite level. He continued:
"I know a lot of y'all ain't watch OKC games unless they was prime time, but like, go do your research, fam. I been this, like I've been at this level. I had shoes, I had MVPs before I met these guys. And we did something special together, but don't try to take away from what I've done, bro."
Luka Doncic single-handedly dominates Italian national team in a friendly game while playing for Slovenia
Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks reached the Conference Finals for the first time since their 2011 championship win this year. Doncic seems eager to do better and make his debut NBA Finals appearance in the upcoming campaign. The 23-year-old has been putting in the work this offseason, and he is in game shape already.
The Mavericks superstar guard donned the Slovenian national team jersey in a friendly game against Italy. Doncic was seen pulling the moves and single-handedly dominating the contest. Here's a clip of some of his best plays (via Bleacher Report Twitter):
Luka TAKING OVER while playing for Slovenia in a friendly vs. Italy 😤🔥
(via @swishcultures_)
https://t.co/SZ4QwnXXb6
Kendrick Perkins wants Kevin Durant to hold his co-stars accountable
Former NBA player Kendrick Perkins believes Kevin Durant should hold his teammates accountable. The Brooklyn Nets may see their star-studded roster dismantled this offseason following their disappointing exit in the 2022 playoffs.
The Nets were the favorites to win it all during the preseason. However, Kyrie Irving's suspension due to his anti-vaccination stance and James Harden's midseason departure hampered their playoff ambitions.
Durant didn't hold Irving or Harden accountable throughout the season. His former OKC Thunder teammate Kendrick Perkins believes that KD should do a better job on that front. Here's what Perkins said regarding this during an appearance on ESPN's First Take:
"Here's my thing when it comes down to KD that I just can't wrap my finger around and understand. When it comes to him holding his teammates, and 'brothers' accountable for their actions like a Kyrie Irving, or like a James Harden, or any of those guys, he's very hesitant, and he's very quiet, and he's so just very supportive.
Perkins added:
"Hell, he tries to come at Stephen A. and myself more in the media and on Twitter than he does his own teammates, and that's crazy to me. At what point is KD gonna stop being so damn friendly?"
Tracy McGrady questions Rudy Gobert's offseason workout
Former NBA star Tracy McGrady is unimpressed with Rudy Gobert not making modifications to his game in the offseason. Gobert is one of the most traditional centers in the league, who has a limited skill set and is efficient in the paint only.
The NBA has evolved, and modern-day centers have widened their scope of play. Some of the most dominant bigs around the league have worked on becoming elite shooters, ball-handlers and playmakers.
That hasn't been the case with 3-time DPOY Gobert, though, who has often struggled to do well in the postseason. Here's what McGrady said regarding this during a recent appearance on the 'No Chill with Gilbert Arenas' podcast:
"This is what I've been wondering, what the f**k are you doing in the offseason? Like what is your workout?"
Tracy McGrady went back in time to describe one of Gobert's post-ups against Chris Paul when the latter was with the Houston Rockets.
"I was so mad at Rudy when they were playing against the Rockets one year bro and Chris Paul was guarding him in the post, I was mad as s**t. He couldn't do nothing. Bro you're 7'2" and a point guard is guarding you, he had no moves."
Andre Iguodala claps back at critics following Warriors 2022 NBA championship win; says they took Golden State for granted
Golden State Warriors players showed no remorse to their critics following their 2022 NBA championship run. The Warriors endured a rough three-year patch after their 2019 Finals loss to the Raptors. During that stretch, no one gave them a shot at returning to the top, especially with Kevin Durant leaving the franchise and Klay Thompson missing two-and-a-half years of playing due to an ACL and Achilles injury.
However, the Warriors were determined to prove their critics wrong. They remembered the harsh criticism directed at them from rival players, fans and a few analysts, and relentlessly mocked them after winning their fourth championship. Speaking about their comeback, and the noise surrounding the Warriors players not holding back their thoughts, Andre Iguodala said on the 'Point Forward' podcast:
“Yeah, we got our s**t off on this one. You can’t deny four rings in the NBA! They take for granted how good we are. Like they punished us for the amount of rings we have. We got four! We don’t have one or two. We have four!”
"I told y'all don't let us win a f*cking championship... and y'all done f*cked up"
--@Money23Green tried to warn you 🗣️ https://t.co/lbBaRzZvdy
The Golden State Warriors have a lot left in the tank and will be entering as the preseason favorites to win the title ahead of the upcoming campaign.