Maybe the word "own" is a little strong, we as Black men are sensitive to that word in any context but lets just say Lebron has Kevin Durant on lock. Kevin Durant is sorely mistaken if he believes the largess of ESPN gives Skip Bayless a platform where brainwashing sports fans is easy...because he's speaking to the demographic repelled by skinny pink jeans and nerd glasses. Besides, we aren't the ones sequestered with a friend who is in very real terms our chief professional rival doing something we can do with ANYONE else. I find it hard to believe that Durant cant afford world class training services and call his friend when he is done with his day, i also find it hard to believe the proximity and closeness of ALL of the current stars isn't undermining the chance to develop rivalries. English is not our first language, it's competition, dominion over rivals, go ahead name a male dominated field and i can point to a clearly established Alpha Male on Top. Lebron James is an Extraterrestrial Basketball Talent, who just happens to be a great friend, but Durant has to mature enough to know when to set boundaries on certain relationships. It's Steven A . Smith who is trying to mess with the minds of viewers with empty calories (stats) knowing all well a legacy is made up of INTENSE moments of "grown ass man" assertiveness.
Now that Lebron is the benchmark the "AAU buddy buddy" Culture is not only the preferred model but the Jordan model is being unfairly stigmatized. Jordan's Hall of Fame speech, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett's late career prickliness only solidified the new generation as the self professed "more evolved species". They are more physically gifted but show this annoying deficit from the neck up that they know wont be challenged because nowadays everybody is a fan-including media members. Durant may not know this, but he will never be better than Lebron James and the only way to beat him is to get under his skin- in ways that may not lend themselves to friendship. Stephen A Smith likes to say Bayless unfairly rolls out Michael Jordan's legendary mindset and therefor disqualifies his unfair attack on Durant. I'll spot him that and point out a few players that may not be better than Lebron James as we speak , I'll even point out a player who NEVER got it done. All three situations will illustrate just what it is Durant has to realize before it's too late.
Larry Bird
I bring him up because ultimately after the 1987 finals he had to admit Magic was the best he'd ever seen. What made that admission so poignant is the fact that 40 minutes previous he was convinced he was the best that ever did it. He wasn't better than Magic, but dammit you had to kill Larry Bird to beat him and Magic knew it. They turned out to be the closest of friends towards the end of their careers but Larry had the right mindset. Magic was a great guy much like Lebron but Bird didn't have the space in his harddrive to deal with that in 1982, all he had room for was "destroy him". Basketball teams can only have 5 players on the floor; one player can make all the difference in the world so that one player has to give his teammates the belief that he is their Warlord- Larry was a "Celtic" 365 Days a year. He understood Basketball is an individual sport within a team sport and as the less talented of the two he had to be Joe Frazier, his workouts were private times when he obsessed about hurting Magic. Durant's workouts with Lebron last year may have benefited him but once a man hurts you, bloodies your lip and takes something from you it's time to give the attitude a workout.
Isaiah Thomas
Remember the "kissy kissy" between the two Big Ten alumni back in the 1989 Finals?. Remember how chippy it got? and who started it?. Let me remind you, Magic who already had rings started clotheslining Thomas when it was clear "Zeke" was not taking no for an answer. What happened to that big showtime smile? Isiah learned what Larry Bird already knew, that Magic is a good guy when he's on top but he's the biggest killer out there. That number Lebron put on the Celtics?, that's the real Lebron, he's cut from the same cloth of the great ones, he just had a lot of childhood pathology covering it up-look for more of it. Magic was perfectly fine when Isiah was his little homie celebrating in the locker room after a Laker Championship, the friendship changed once he realized Thomas was taking notes. In fact everything that followed with the Dream Team was about Isiah not accepting his role in the NBA landscape. He wasn't left off that team over hard fouls or any rumored gossip about Magic's health condition. He was left off that team because he ushered Bird out, Beat Magic and Terrorized Jordan plain and simple. Look at Isiah's smile, he's content, he did what he had to do and he has no regrets- and he isn't better than either three of those players.
And Just in Case you think I'm just rolling out Champions
Reggie Miller, long, thin, assassin, now KD should study him. He had the misfortune of overlapping the Jordan and Kobe era but he played both of those guys like his ass was on fire. I was a Jordan/Bulls fan and honestly nobody scared me like Reggie Miller. Watching his Hall of Fame induction i heard him admit for the first time Jordan was better than him, but watching him i could have swore he thought he was "the man". Watching Durant during the Finals didn't give me that feeling and maybe the friendship is a part of it. The Thunder destroyed the Lakers because it was clear they didn't like them and wanted what they had. Watching Michael Jordan play Miller i sensed that on many nights this was the last dude he wanted to see on a back to back. Ironically Miller wasn't blessed with the support needed and he only saw MJ once in the play-offs, and of course HIS team was the only team to take MJ's Bulls 7 games during "The 90's Run". Theres a saying after something catastrophic happens to let us know when certain things (or comments) may be inappropriate; the saying is "Too Soon". It's too soon for Kevin Durant to be working out with Lebron James, and Skip Bayless isn't wrong for questioning whether he is being pacified even further. If Lebron is truly his friend, he'll be there in the end but right now Durant may want to do some soul searching and make the self evaluation necessary to take that next Step.....ON HIS OWN!.
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