Kevin Durant Defends LeBron James in Social Media Posts After 76ers Contract in NBA Free Agency
Kevin Durant took to social media to defend LeBron James from fans who feel like him changing teams again somehow diminishes his NBA legacy.
In the wake of James announcing he was joining the Philadelphia 76ers, fans took to Threads to criticize the move largely because other legendary players like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant are primarily associated with one franchise.
Durant responded to many of the criticisms, writing James “embodies the game of basketball” and pushing back on the idea anyone needs to spend their entire career with one team to enhance their accomplishments.
“Who cares, they all played 15+ years and gave everything to the culture of sports and s–t, the world itself. All the other s–t is noise to me,” Durant wrote in response to a comparison of James, Jordan and Bryant. “I get why u look at it that way, you’re spectator but when u live it, u see s–t different.”
James is joining the Sixers on a two-year, $8 million contract to play alongside Jaylen Brown, Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe and Joel Embiid.
The notion of spending an entire career with one franchise feels so antiquated, particularly because the finances and salary cap in the NBA has changed so much in the time since Jordan and Bryant last played.
Sometimes you will get a Bryant, Derek Jeter or Clayton Kershaw who only plays for one franchise, but those are increasingly rare. Tom Brady spent the final three years of his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
In particular, this apron era has led to teams breaking up successful cores in a way that was rarely ever done in the past. It’s true the Lakers traded Shaquille O’Neal in 2004 when he was still in his prime, but that was primarily due to his strained relationship with Bryant at the time more than anything related to money.
There’s also increased pressure on superstars in every sport to win championships to define their legacy in a way that didn’t exist in the past because the 24-7 talk cycle wasn’t a thing like it has been for most of James’ career.
James has been compared to Jordan and Bryant for basically his entire NBA career. Bryant won five titles in his career, and Jordan won six. James is on a team that is set up to help him win his fifth title as he moves closer to putting the finishing touches on his NBA career.
