Kevin Durant’s career is a constant subject of controversy. Objectively speaking, there’s no denying that he’s a top-10 player ever, skill-wise. Also, he’s a lock to be inducted into the Hall of Fame as soon as he’s eligible.
However, context always matters, and that’s where people debate how high we should put Durant in the all-time rankings. Some will never forgive him for joining the 73-9 Golden State Warriors and will always put an asterisk on his two championships.
That’s the case with Charles Barkley, who’s constantly called him out for bailing on the OKC Thunder. More recently, Chuck went as far as to call him an ‘abject failure’ as he’s never actually led a team.
NBA News: Charles Barkley Says Kevin Durant Is An Abject Failure
“All the old guys, he get mad we say it, (but) he piggybacked on the Warriors to win his first two championships,” Barkley told Arizona Sports. “But if you go back and look at his career, as the best player and being the leader that all goes with that, he’s been an abject failure. Every time he’s had to be the leader and best player, he has not had success. That’s what us old guys think about him.”
“He seems like a miserable person, man. I call him Mr. Miserable, he’s never going to be happy,” Barkley continued. “Everybody’s given him everything on a silver platter. He was the man in Oklahoma City, they loved him, he owned the entire state. He bolts on them and wins back-to-back championships (with Golden State), and he’s still not happy. Then he goes to Brooklyn, they give him everything he wants and he’s still miserable.”
Even without the rings,Durant’s résumé is more impressive than Barkley’s, so I don’t know about that ‘failure’ thing. Still, fair or not, that’s how some people will always look back on him and his career once it’s all said and done.
