“I Needed That”: Kevin Durant Reveals How Draymond Green Got the Best Out of Him at Warriors

Published 06/02/2021, 8:38 AM EDT

The Golden State Warriors with Kevin Durant won two NBA championships in the yesteryears. Along with Curry, Thompson, and Draymond Green, the Warriors were impeccable on the court back then. After the Cleveland Cavaliers came back after being down 3-1 to defeat the Warriors 4-3, GSW bought in Durant to strengthen their already incredible offense. This lead to KD’s first NBA title in his career.

Recently, KD spoke about the influence of Draymond Green during his days with the Warriors.

Kevin Durant on Draymond Green’s influence

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Even though Green is a controversial player, nobody can deny the influence that he brings to the team. His defending abilities on the court are amazing, and he uses his basketball IQ in the defense. In a recent interview, Durant spoke about the impact Green had on his career. He said:

“My first year with the Warriors he put that s***, and I was like okay. I was like I needed that. When I was in OKC, I never had nobody that was like, that was watching me much to say like that… I wanted somebody on the bench just looking at me and be like ‘what is this n**** doing.'”

Durant was one of the key components in GSW’s dominance for two years. Notably, Durant stressed how there were no players to motivate him, back in his days with OKC. But Draymond is a colorful personality and a vocal leader of the team. His commitment shown on the court is second to none, and this helped KD to elevate his game.

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Durant’s time with the Golden State Warriors

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Although the team had Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant helped the Warriors to maximize their offense. The three players functioned as a unit, and this helped the team to lift the NBA title. During his time with the Warriors, Durant averaged 25.8 points per game while also having 1 plus blocks each game.

Despite being subjected to criticisms of how he took the easy way to win the title, Durant’s legacy will forever be etched in Warriors’ history. Now, by partnering with Harden and Kyrie, KD looks set to land his third NBA title this season.

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The much-maligned Kevin Durant is one of the most gifted scorers the league has seen. In addition, the offensive skill set on display is exemplary. However, can he go all the way and win an NBA title again?

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Written by:

Jacob Gijy is an NBA writer at EssentiallySports. Gijy finished his Masters in Counselling Psychology and worked in a hospital for 2 years before his passion for sports compelled him to find his way to sports journalism. A fan of the great Tim Duncan, he is always ready to pick up a debate with anyone who does not offer the centre the respect he deserves.

“I Needed That”: Kevin Durant Reveals How Draymond Green Got the Best Out of Him at Warriors

Kevin Durant on Draymond Green’s influence

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Durant’s time with the Golden State Warriors