NBA Legend Shares Harsh Criticism For Kevin Durant

The Brooklyn Nets are struggling to start the year, and lost again on Thursday to the Dallas Mavericks

Joey Linn | Oct 27, 2022

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The Brooklyn Nets are off to a rough start to the new season. After being swept in the first round of last season, the team was determined to bounce back this year, but it has not looked great so far. Just 1-4, the team lost again on Thursday night to Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks. Before the game, NBA legend Isiah Thomas shared some harsh criticism of Kevin Durant.

On NBA TV's pre-game show, the broadcast showed Durant's abysmal plus/minus stats to start the year. When shown these numbers, Thomas said, "[Durant] used to get 30 [points] and that meant he dominated the game. Now his 30 is just 30."

Seemingly making the "empty stats" argument with Durant, Thomas does not believe he impacts the game at the same level he once did. Despite averaging similar scoring numbers this year to what he has averaged throughout the course of his career, Durant has been unable to translate that to wins so far for Brooklyn. While a lot more goes into that than just Durant's individual numbers, such as the poor performance of others on the Nets, Thomas believes Durant's impact is not what it once was.

It is still very early in the season, so Durant and his team have time to turn this around. Things have not looked good so far, but just five games into the season, it is far too early for any blistering hot takes.

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Published Oct 27, 2022

JOEY LINN

Title: Credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation Email: joeylinn32@sbcglobal.net Education: Communication Studies degree from Biola University Location: Los Angeles, California Expertise: NBA analysis, insight, and reporting Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined Sports Illustrated's FanNation to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Receiving a media credential during the 2021-22 season, Joey has experience interviewing NBA players, and developing exclusive stories from these interviews. Having appeared on several different NBA podcasts over the last four seasons, Joey is now hosting his own podcast for The Sporting Tribune. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams during his time in school. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts, combined with his excellence in the classroom, earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Now graduated, Joey is covering the NBA full-time across multiple platforms. Credentialed by the Clippers, Joey covers the team daily with articles, podcasts, and video breakdowns on YouTube. With four years of sports media experience, Joey provides expert insight and analysis for NBA fans across the league.

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