Given what a roller coaster ride the NBA offseason has been, it seems like Kevin Durant getting helped off the court in Game 5 of the NBA Finals while Toronto Raptors fans cheered was lifetime ago.
Durant suffered a ruptured Achilles in the game. The reaction from the Toronto crowd drew plenty of criticism at the time, and Durant finally has issued a reply.
In a sit-down with Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes, Durant, who has since left the Golden State Warriors for the Brooklyn Nets, says he did not hear the cheers in the moment, but nonetheless wanted to issue a message to the Raptors faithful.
“It will probably be the last time they will be in the Finals,” Durant said with a smirk, as Haynes notes.
Durant went on to say that he tried to continue watching the game, but it was too tough for him to endure.
“Yeah, I still think about that night,” Durant told Yahoo Sports. “Every experience I’ve been through in the league is obviously always ingrained in my mind, but that one is definitely always going to be a huge part of my career because it’s the biggest stage and the type of injury I had. But now I look at it as me just going out there playing basketball, and I happened to get hurt. And now I’m just waiting to get back. I know it’s a huge deal to everybody else, but I just try to take it on the chin and keep it moving.”
Of course, the NBA was flipped on its head over the summer, with Kawhi Leonard leaving the Raptors for the Los Angeles Clippers. So that clap back from Durant might hit close to home, which likely is exactly what Durant wanted.
The forward is expected to miss a major chunk, if not all, of the upcoming season. But one thing is for sure, his next trip to Scotiabank Arena might be a must watch.
