“He's championship driven because he's winning driven” - Kevin Durant’s agent Rich Kleiman opens up about the Brooklyn Nets star’s killer mentality
Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets are among the favourites, if not the outright favorites to win the NBA championship this season. Durant's agent, Rich Kleiman opened up about KD's mentality as he tries to win his third ring and first in Brooklyn.
In a recent appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio, Kleiman talked about Durant's motivations for the season and what drives him to greatness. He mentioned that KD is "championship driven" and loves to win any competition, whether it's in a game, practice or even pop-a-shot.
"He's championship driven because he's winning driven. He wants to win every drill, he wants to win every rep in practice. He wants to win pop a shot when playing with his friends, just a competitive dude, and loves to win and loves to master his own game," Kleinman said.
🏀 MVP
🏆 2x Champ
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Kevin Durant has already accomplished so much, so what still drives him?
His manager @richkleiman talks KD's motivation with @TheFrankIsola & @Scalabrine https://t.co/HhPOSUc48l
Kevin Durant's longtime manager also added that KD is getting better despite his age and just two years removed from a serious injury. What Kleiman finds truly remarkable is that Durant is more bothered by doing the wrong thing as a team than being second in MVP conversations.
"I feel like when he feels like he didn't play the right way or the team didn't play the right way, even if they won, that's the kind of stuff that seems to bother him more than like he didn't get his shots or he's no longer the No. 1 candidate in the MVP race throughout the year. I think that's less important," Kleiman said.
Besides being his manager, Rich Kleiman is also the joint business partner of Kevin Durant's Thirty Five Ventures. An investment company that has already partnered with more than 75 businesses across industries such as media, finance, health and cryptocurrency.
Thirty Five Ventures' investment portfolio includes companies in fintech, cryptocurrency, health & wellness, media and many more . With deep relationships in venture capital and private equity, the 35V team works strategically with a subset of partners on strategy, content and marketing initiatives.
Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman first met in 2008 in KD's second season in the NBA. They established Thirty Five Ventures in 2016 and have not slowed down since. The pair also owns Boardroom, a media network that already generates 90 million impressions and six million video views per month, as reported by Forbes.
Kevin Durant sits out game against the Houston Rockets
Despite recent comments on wanting to play more minutes every game, the Brooklyn Nets gave Kevin Durant some rest for their Wednesday matchup against the Houston Rockets. It was the Nets' second game of a back-to-back and Durant played 40 minutes in the 102-99 win over the Dallas Mavericks last Tuesday.
In the absence of Durant, the Nets had a difficult first half against the Rockets in Houston. The Rockets, despite their tough start to the season are one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now as they defeated Brooklyn 114-104 to win their seventh game in a row. They also spoiled James Harden's homecoming after his trade last season.
Nets Kevin Durant effortless excellence. He’s not playing tonight (rest) vs #Rockets https://t.co/0O3B3iAdwp
In addition to Kevin Durant, the Nets also rested veteran big man LaMarcus Aldridge against the Rockets. James Harden led the Nets with 25 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, but it was not enough to beat his former team.
The Nets have an opportunity to get back in the win column on Friday against Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks. With an added rest day, Durant is expected to play and lead Brooklyn to victory. The Nets are currently first in the Eastern Conference standings with a 17-8 record, but just half a game ahead of the Chicago Bulls.