No news broken here, Kevin Durant, the hottest commodity on the free agent market, has spurned his former teammates, administration and fanbase to join the NBA’s team least in need of assistance, the Golden State Warriors. Yes the current occupiers of the NBA’s throne reside in Cleveland, but this recent turn of events has us all wondering how short lived of a reign it shall be. Were sports a cosmic wonderland, the happenings of this past weekend wholly eclipsed the jubilance emitting star, currently burning bright over the state of Ohio.
The league already seems as if on borrowed time. The Warriors have willingly gutted their bench, casting aside their previously steadfast belief in depth and player flexibility. Golden State will soon take the court with a literal super team. This wasn’t supposed to happen. There were two wrinkles in time, shifting the quantum balance of basketball logic that enabled this endeavor to the darkest timeline. This corner of the multiverse formed on the backs of two unexpected and pivotal events. The Thunder were the superior team in the Western Conference Finals and should have won the series after leading 3-1, and subsequently, had Draymond Green not been suspended for game five of the Finals, the Warriors would be back to back NBA champions. With Cleveland winning it’s first title in more than fifty years, open swung the door, the gate to the unlikely was left open and unattended. Had the Thunder won, KD would have likely remained with his home team, becoming a lifelong fixture in a market devoid of professional sports rivals. Had Golden State won, their 73 win season, capped off with their second championship in a row, would have cemented them as the greatest team in NBA history, rendering them unalterable. There would have been no getting better. Yet, these are not the events of our present day situation, the Thunder choked, Draymond acted like a child and cost his team a title and Lebron pounced with the tenacity and fervor only he is capable of.
Of Golden State’s fellow suitors, their positions and directions vary with as great difference as their monikers. The Thunder now silent, the storm has passed and a new dawn beats down upon a startled, vulnerable flock. There is the former counterpart, Russell Westbrook, but now solitary, his powers seem less capable, what is thunder without lightning? The Spurs now the lone gunslinger, outnumbered and out outmaneuvered, they prepare for the coming skirmish. One hand firmly grasps the most potent weapon of it’s arsenal, a powerful, versatile piece, but lacking full ammunition, the other hand, rapidly losing it’s decreasing grip upon an aging, legendary revolver. The Clippers now rehoist their sails and readjust destinations, correctly predicting the turning tide, the captain of the mighty ship departed before the coming tempest. The Heat now burn with diminished, near extinguished flame, the much needed fuel not added to the fire, it remains only a matter of time before the blaze turns to timid, simmering coals. The Celtics now the unlucky castaway, at first brimming with hope and belief of familiar greatness to be, begin again unassisted.
Now stand the Warriors, the corporate bail out, the silver spoon to the undeserving, the mighty, victorious gladiator only to be given additional artillery. For the majority of the past season the Warriors were a national favorite, it was as if the nation was rooting for them to unseat Jordan’s 95-96 Bulls, win a title and reign with impunity. Them days are gone. With target now firmly affixed, the Warriors will now be the recipients of unrivaled disgust, as will their new small forward Kevin Durant. What makes the scenario so intriguing is that the two were revered as separate entities, yet together prove unpalatable. The Warriors were a team of undersized, skillful savants, playing with lyrical chemistry and ball movement, while shepherded by a new age round ball guru. KD was the basketball genius, egoless, loyal and formed as if by a lab tasked with creating the perfect offensive weapon. Lebron the non malleable, smashing broadsword, Durant was the swift, beautifully efficient rapier, mesmerizing with it’s effectiveness and aesthetic magnificence.
Together they’re the cheap boss battle. You know the one, you’ve played the game whatever it may be. When you’ve leveled up your character to the max, learned all the ins and outs and set out to complete your journey, only to be presented with new chicanes and tricks leaving you incapable of achieving your video game goals. The extreme gut reaction is that Golden State and Kevin Durant have ruined the league, ripped apart competitive balance and left franchises reeling in the process. Sadly, this is all true to some degree. The Warriors now stand apart, the league is comprised of 29 normal teams and one All Star team. It hardly seems fair or beneficial. Had Durant gone East, Lebron could finally have some competition in his conference, instead he will sleepwalk his way once again into the Finals. The Thunder are now decimated and face the real question of whether they must now trade Russell Westbrook, as he will undoubtedly leave next year.
For the Warriors the acquisition seems logical, the gains should be greater than the losses. For Durant the whole thing just seems empty. When you get punched in the face, you don’t get back up and ask the bully to accept you into his circle of friends. Curry and Durant are in the conversation to be considered all time greats, Curry has won one already, however, Durant’s future success will be viewed under the cast shadow of his alliances. In the game of basketball, where legendary status is long sought after, hiccups such as these serve as the flutter of a butterfly’s wings as they ripple through time, forever altering one’s perceived value and place within hallowed halls. Durant, now a Warrior, departs on his mission with a new army beside him. The battle no longer virtuous, the trophy no longer of equivalent merit. If KD’s tenure and potential championships with the Warriors are a breathtaking vista, it remains impressive nonetheless. But it is the method of achievement that commonly selects the sweetness of fruit. While competitors toil under impossible odds, bond over surprising strength of will, passion and grit to blaze the unbeaten trail, to embark on an improbable trek only to end at a landscape a select few are eligible to observe, the reward is limitless.
Kevin Durant and the Warriors are the travelers who parked half way up, paid someone to carry their luggage and took a cable car. The end is the same, but when the paths are not, the integrity of experience is lost and the goal, while obtained, possesses vastly inferior satisfaction.
