“There was no reason you should’ve felt… ‘We can’t beat this team’” - NBA analyst sounds off on Kevin Durant conveying his feelings about Brooklyn’s chances against Boston to former teammate
NBA analyst Chris Broussard wasn't impressed with Kevin Durant for his recent revelations to a former teammate. He told Mike James that the Brooklyn Nets were heading towards a loss in their first-round series matchup before the tie ended.
In a recent interview that went viral, James said (H/T Nets Wire):
"So when they[the Nets] was trash and they was losing, I called him one day, I was like ‘You know what this means right? You going to come to my playoff game'”, said James.
"He was like ‘No way I’m coming to your playoff game and then like a week later, he[Durant] called me before the playoffs started, he’s like ‘Yeah I’m going to be there.’"
"[Kevin Durant] called me before the playoffs start, he's like, 'Yeah, I'm gonna be there [at your playoff game] in like a couple weeks. We fitting to lose.'" 🤯
— Mike James
(via @PlayersChoice_, h/t @blbuckets3)
https://t.co/f6wQY4wzHF
Mike James plays for AS Monaco in the EuroLeague, where the playoffs start a few days after the NBA postseason. James didn't mention whether he was talking about the NBA playoffs or the EuroLeague playoffs. It led to critics hounding Kevin Durant to predict that the Nets would lose against the Celtics.
However, Broussard considered James to be talking about the EuroLeague playoffs. Durant predicted Brooklyn's fate while they were on the verge of a series loss. The Fox Sports analyst sounded off on KD regardless of the timing of his comments on the latest episode of First Things First, saying:
"We don't know the exact time, but regardless, I don't like it. It's something, alright. I'll give him this, you're talking with your boy he obviously wouldn't have said that publicly... But I don't like it, you're the leader of the team. You're Kevin freaking Durant!"
Broussard added:
"If I was as good at basketball as Kevin Durant and I had a teammate like Kyrie Irving... It's going to have to be a heck of a team. that we're playing for me to think we can't win.
"And the Boston Celtics, as good as they ended up being, were young, are young, there was no reason you should've felt at any moment, 'we can't beat this team.''
Brooklyn hasn't given up on Kevin Durant retracting his trade request
Kevin Durant made a shocking trade request to move out of Brooklyn this offseason. The Nets talisman reportedly handed the request on June 30th, just days after Kyrie Irving opted into the final year of his deal. The reasoning behind Durant's desire to move out of Brooklyn remains unclear.
Kevin Durant has requested a trade out of Brooklyn, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
Several teams showed interest in acquiring KD, but the offers didn't match Brooklyn's expectations.
In the meantime, Rudy Gobert's trade to the Minnesota Timberwolves also hampered a potential Durant trade. The T'Wolves unloaded four first-round picks and a pick swap, along with Patrick Beverley, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt and Leandro Bolmaro.
Nets Believe Kevin Durant Could Still Rescind Trade Request - Hoops Wire hoopswire.com/nets-believe-k…
ESPN's Zach Lowe recently reported that 'smart people around the league believed it was going to be 'impossible' to trade Kevin Durant even before the Gobert trade. It was difficult to judge a fair value for a player of Durant's caliber, who has four years left on his deal.
According to Lowe's sources, the Nets hope Durant's camp realizes that, and he retracts his trade request.