Kevin Durant talks chip on his shoulder: 'The NBA is never going to fulfill me'
Kevin Durant rarely seems satisfied.
The mercurial superstar wasn’t satisfied losing in the playoffs with Russell Westbrook, so he bolted the Oklahoma City Thunder for the Golden State Warriors.
After winning championships alongside Stephen Curry, he’s not satisfied having been denied universal validation as a large portion of the NBA fanbase has criticized him for taking the easy path.
He been in a steady state of dissatisfaction over the years on social media, engaging in conflicts with fans and players, often over criticism aimed at him.
Is he satisfied playing in Golden State?
With his impending free agency after this season, many are wondering how satisfied he is with his current basketball situation and seek clues on what he’s thinking about next.
Count NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke among them.
Burke recently spoke with Durant for a Q and A prefaced to be about his legacy, but managed to prod Durant about his free agency.
Durant: ‘NBA is never going to fulfill me’
Durant generally dodged giving anything firm to grasp on in the interview, but he did provide an interesting nugget about what the NBA means to him on a larger scale.
From Burke’s interview:
With your skills and what you’ve accomplished, do you feel the need to build something somewhere else? Do you need that for yourself?
“I don’t need anything in this basketball world to fulfill anything in me,” Durant said. “The NBA is never going to fulfill me. It’s going to make me feel good about all of the work that I’ve put in, but I think those days of me wanting to prove something to anybody or walk around with a huge chip on my shoulder is not my thing.
“It wasn't before, and I felt like I had to program myself to play with a chip on my shoulder, but I’m never good in that situation. I’m more relaxed and letting these days flow. I’m the best version of me.”
Those sound like the words of a man whose aware of the image he’s created over the years and feels that image is at odds with who he actually is. Durant has defined playing with a chip on one’s shoulder and has lashed out with regularity to demonstrate as such.
Maybe he’s coming to terms with how to approach getting rid of that chip. Only time and his actions will tell if he’s able to do so.
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