While Kobe Bryant 's notorious feud with Shaquille O'Neal was widely publicized, the 18-time All-Star was unknowingly involved in another beef, this time with Kevin Durant . When The Slim Reaper entered the league in 2007, he was determined to be the best player.
Although he greatly respected the Black Mamba - who was already a three-time NBA Champ by that time - KD wasn't looking to befriend him. In fact, the young forward was so determined to prove his mettle that he created an imaginary rivalry with the Lakers great in his head.
Durant on his beef with Kobe
When KD debuted for the Seattle SuperSonics in the '07-08 season, Bryant had already led the league in scoring for two consecutive seasons and won his lone MVP award that year. So, for young players like Durant, the 6'6" shooting guard was an inspiration and a true source of wisdom. However, this didn't stop the 2008 ROY from wanting to outperform the five-time NBA Champ whenever they faced each other on the hardwood.
In the 36 games played between the two, Durant averaged 26.9 points, outscoring Bryant in 19 of those contests. Moreover, this determination and zeal to best the LA Lakers guard continued until their final meeting on the court.
During Bryant's last on-road game in the 2015-16 season, he faced the OKC Thunder. Though the hype was around Kobe, Durant stole all the limelight by dropping a game-high 36 points on 61.1% shooting from the field as the home team touted the Purple and Gold by 33 points.
In his post-game interview, KD delivered into learning competitiveness from Kobe, who himself never took it easy against his idol - Michael Jordan, when the five-time MVP was near retirement.
"I remember when Michael Jordan was on his way out, and Kobe didn't take it easy on him," Durant said . "That's all I was thinking. I was trying to destroy him every chance I got. Every time I got the ball, he was, 'Come on. Let's see what you got.'"
Moreover, on an episode of his podcast, 'The ETCs,' the two-time NBA Champ emphasized how he developed a fake rivalry in his head with Kobe to ensure that he could be a step ahead of the other best player in the league.
"I felt like I had a beef with Kobe Bryant, but he didn't even know I had this beef," Durant said . "As you get older, you look at these guys as just sharpening you and making you better."
Related: "He was alienated from those guys" - Clyde Drexler named the Dream Team members who didn't want Isiah Thomas on the team
KD's healthy beef extended to different players
Importantly, Durant didn't cultivate this mental competition only against Kobe. He extended this approach to other stars like LeBron James, consistently checking their box scores to stay aware and motivate himself to perform better.
"When Bron goes to score 50 points, or James Harden has 60 points, I'm looking at how can I top it just to be better... how can I maintain that level I was on too, " Durant concluded. "It's a healthy competition."
This is not a new strategy, as old-school superstars like Bird and Magic never hesitated in admitting how they kept themselves aware by checking each other's box scores to ensure their impact and performance remained better. Safe to say, looking at Durant's success, this is definitely a positive trait to adopt as it only encourages a player to be able to rise tall even against the greatest.
Related: Tracy McGrady shares why he wanted to play alongside Kobe Bryant: “I was always the type of player like a Scottie Pippen type"
Local News
Comments / 0