Kevin Durant fined for language used towards a fan

There are no two ways around it: It’s been a tough week for Kevin Durant. On Monday, November 12th, he was involved in an altercation with Draymond Green, and, based on his comments and press conferences since then, is still feeling hurt.

Then, with Green and Steph Curry sidelined by injuries, Durant and the Warriors suffered a 1-4 record through the week, including a losing sweep to the three Texas teams. In those three games, Durant shot just 25-64 (39.1%) from the field, and 1-14 (7.1%) from beyond the arc.

In the second of those three Texas games, the Warriors were bested by the Dallas Mavericks. During the game, Durant got into an altercation with a Mavericks fan, which was caught on camera. Taking exception to something the fan said, Durant stopped and yelled something rather PG-13. And, after the league reviewed the tape, it was determined that Durant would be fined $25,000.

Without knowing what was said to Durant, it’s hard to either judge or justify his actions too much. Professional athletes are subject to all sorts of vitriol and inappropriate personal attacks, and you can’t really blame them for lashing out occasionally when things cross the line. Then again, we don’t know if the fan actually crossed the line, or if Durant did.

What will be interesting to see is Durant’s reaction, and we may be able to see a very authentic version of it. The MVP was recording a podcast with Chris Haynes when the news broke, so there’s a chance that, when released, the podcast will have a real-time reaction from Durant.

Either way, it capped a tough week for the two-time Finals MVP. Here’s hoping this week is a bit better for him.