No one of sound mind expected the Golden State Warriors to crumble against the San Antonio Spurs on opening night, at home, to the tune of a 29-point loss.
Yes, this team is still trying to incorporate a fourth All-NBA talent onto its roster and into its schemes. But the likes of Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green complement each other so perfectly, nothing else mattered. Not a learning curve, not the rest of the players on the roster, nothing. Their union was supposed to be instantly, unfathomably dominant.
In the aftermath of their 129-100 loss, though, people have started to question everything we thought we knew about them. These questions are beyond premature and wholly unwarranted, but they exist, because that’s the world we live in today, and because the Warriors have a target on their back. And Durant seems to feel the pressure, not in a way that suggests he fears it, but in the sense that avoiding another single-game failure of that magnitude is consuming him.
Take this from ESPN.com’s Ethan Sherwood Strauss:
Soaked in sweat, Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant’s yells echoed throughout an empty Smoothie King Center, home of the New Orleans Pelicans.
“They say I ain’t hungry!”
“I’m out here!”
Durant was working to bounce back from his team’s 29-point loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night. The former MVP stayed late after practice Thursday in preparation for Friday night’s game against the Pelicans, shooting between one-on-one drills with Warriors assistant coach Chris DeMarco.
Shooting his last shots, Durant said, “They told me I ain’t have no drive! I’m out here. They called me a coward! Putting in work.”
When asked after his session about shouting criticisms, Durant explained, “That’s what I say to myself when I’m working. I hear it all the time. You hear the noise. You hear what they say about you. Everybody hears it. So it’s a little extra motivation when you hear it.”
Basically, Durant is training like some underdog. Never mind that he’s an MVP, or even that he shot 11-of-18 from the floor in that loss to the Spurs. He is taking any and all criticism to heart.
This, quite obviously, can feel manufactured. Durant has been criticized for syncing up with a 73-win nucleus, but it’s not like anyone worth a damn truly doubts his ability.
Still, the idea that Durant can find motivation, even if it’s a bit contrived, amid such fortunate circumstances, isn’t a bad thing by any means.
Unless, that is, you play for one of the NBA’s 29 other teams.
