"This s**t is over with": Kevin Durant recalls thinking his NBA career was finished seconds after popping Achilles
NBA superstar Kevin Durant is still playing at a high level well into his 18th year in the league. There was, however, a time when he thought his career was over.
That came in the 2019 NBA Finals when he tore his Achilles tendon in Game 5 as he tried to help the Golden State Warriors win their third straight world title. They eventually fell short, losing to the Toronto Raptors in six games.
In a recent interview with Boardroom, the former No. 2 pick (2007) opened up about what went through his mind immediately after the injury happened:
"It's 20,000 people in there and I heard a pop. So I'm like, 'Oh my gosh,' and my whole basketball career flashed before my eyes. Everything, everything I did, everything that I thought about … I'm just sitting there gazing into the crowd before somebody came over to help me up because I'm just like, 'This sh*t is over with.'"
Durant added:
"Like I truly don't know what I'm about to be, and that's a nerve-racking feeling when you don't know who you are."
Watch the interview below, beginning at the 34:53 mark:
The game turned out to be his last in a Warriors uniform as he joined Brooklyn the following season. He, however, missed his entire first year with the Nets as he continued to recover from his Achilles injury.
He has since recovered and is now trying to lead the Phoenix Suns to their first-ever NBA title. This season, Kevin Durant is avergaing 28.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and 5.7 assists for the Suns (33-22), who are fifth in the Western Conference.
Kevin Durant hopes to win an NBA title with Phoenix Suns
As he continues his NBA journey, "KD" looks to experience more success, particularly winning an NBA title with the Phoenix Suns.
Durant already has two league titles to his name during his time with the Golden State Warriors (2017 and 2018), along with two Finals MVPs, one league MVP, and 14 All-Star selections. Furthermore, he said winning another title, this time with the Suns, is something he would want.
He, however, made it clear that for it to happen it should not be all about him, telling Arizona Sports in an interview:
“I don’t even look at it that way, I’ll be happy to experience something with this group of guys in this city. We’ll celebrate that together if it happens, but it’s not about me at the end of the day. It is about all of us. Everybody plays a part from the fans to media to the players to executives, so it’s bigger than just me.”
Watch the interview below, beginning at the 7:14 mark:
Heading into the All-Star break, the Suns, led by the triumvirate of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, won back-to-back games and are set to resume their campaign on the road against the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday.