ESPN Analyst fiercely argues JJ Redick's claim of Kevin Durant being "underappreciated"
Kevin Durant is widely considered to be one of the greatest scorers of his era. From the time he joined the Seattle Supersonics, Durant has continued to impress with his scoring abilities. In addition, with two championships and an MVP award to his name, Kevin Durant's legacy largely speaks for itself. Despite that, some fans have discredited his accomplishments.
With his two titles coming with the Golden State Warriors, who proved both before and after his stint that they could win without him, there's debate surrounding his legacy. Some, such as Charles Barkley, believe Durant needs to win a title as the bus driver rather than as someone riding the bus.
The way JJ Redick sees things, Durant is largely underappreciated in the modern NBA. Fellow NBA vet Kendrick Perkins on the other hand, sees things differently. Speaking on ESPN's Get Up this week, Perkins fired back, arguing that Durant is appreciated plenty.
"He is taking a reach and he is wrong. FIrst of all KD doesn’t even fit in the box. We are talking about an all time great. Guys have acknowledged that right now, KD is a top 20 All-time great. That is not being under appreciated.
"Kevin Durant started in the All-Star game, that is not being under appreciated by fans. I have him as arguably the greatest scorer to ever touch the damn basketball."
Looking back at Charles Barkley's bus driver comments and why many discredit Kevin Durant's championships
Back before joining the Golden State Warriors, Kevin Durant and the OKC Thunder had taken the NBA by storm. The trio of Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden had reached the NBA Finals and proved that they had what it takes to compete with the best teams in the league.
Despite that, after the team blew a 3-1 lead over the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals, Durant stunned fans and joined the Warriors. An MVP caliber player joining a team who had recently won an NBA title was controversial enough.
In Durant's case, not only had he joined the team who just eliminated he and the OKC Thunder, he also joined a Warriors team who made history. Golden State posted a historic 73-9 record, breaking the 72-10 record set by the 1995-96 Bulls.
When Kevin Durant and the Warriors then won two titles in three years, many dubbed them a superteam, writing off Durant's accomplishment. This has continued to result in criticism from many fans, and analysts, with Charles Barkley infamously saying in 2020 KD needs to win a ring as the bus driver.
The way he, and many others (to JJ Redick's point) see things, Durant's rings aren't as respectable as say Dirk Nowitzki's 2011 championship.