Dubs in-depth: Kevin Durant claps back at Bob Myers

Former Golden State Warrior Kevin Durant didn’t appreciate Dubs general manager Bob Myers saying there wasn’t any joy in winning the 2017-18 NBA championship.

ESPN’s Nick Friedell spoke with Myers about the similarities between the Warriors and the 1990s Chicago Bulls dynasty.

Here is what Myers had to say about the team’s run at a second championship in as many years:

“The second time with Kevin [in 2018] it felt like, ‘Well, we just did what we were supposed to do, and great job,’” Warriors president and general manager Bob Myers said of the last time the Warriors won a title. “It wasn’t joy. I’m sure a lot of people felt differently. It wasn’t anybody’s fault. I think there’s just a weight to everything. And so I’m sure [the Bulls] felt that weight of everything, weight of relationships.”

Although Durant didn’t respond directly to Myers, he commented on Sideline Sources’ Instagram post of the 2018 winning team saying, players looked, “happy as s— in that pic though.”

It was always going to be championship or bust once Durant signed with Golden State during the 2016 offseason. The 2017 season was basically a revenge tour for the Warriors and the squad ripped through the NBA playoffs with a 16-1 record.

Head coach Steve Kerr alluded to the fact that the emotional toll of making the NBA Finals for five straight seasons wore down the players towards the end of the run. Although the players didn’t show their frustrations publicly often, we did see Draymond Green and Durant go at it during the 2018-19 season.

Durant was in a no-win situation once he joined the Dubs. If the team lost, he would have become a punchline for the haters. On the flip side, even though the Warriors won back-to-back chips his first two seasons, those same people wouldn’t give him credit because he joined a 73-win team.

There is no doubt in my mind that Golden State would have won the 2019 championship if KD didn’t get hurt, but that wouldn’t have been enough for Durant to stay in the Bay Area once his contract was up.

When did you start to think Durant wouldn’t re-sign with the Warriors?

Onto some links:

We have debated about who the better big man is out of USC’s Onyeka Okongwu and Memphis’ James Wiseman. The SF Chronicle’s Connor Letourneau says the Dubs are higher on Okongwu going into the 2020 NBA Draft.

It will be interesting to see how former No. 1 pick Andrew Wiggins will fit in next to Steph Curry and Klay Thompson next season. The Athletic’s Anthony Slater says the team has big plans for Wiggins next season.

The 2017 Warriors are one of the best NBA teams in NBA history. But, the hater Kendrick Perkins left Dubs off of his list of the top five teams of all time. (NBC Bay Area)

Steph Curry is the greatest shooter of all time. NBC Bay Area’s Dalton Johnson wrote about one record Curry has that will never be broken.