Kevin Durant is one of the greatest scorers of all time. I’d even argue he is the most talented and skilled scorer ever, but due to injuries, he doesn’t have the all-time numbers to back it up. Before he started getting injured frequently, before the injuries, he was the one guy everyone thought could possibly beat the all-time scoring record.
Now, obviously, LeBron James broke it last season, but Durant is still 113th in scoring all-time despite the injuries that have held him back and forced him to miss large chunks of his career. He has the potential to move up to 10th all-time this regular season, passing Elvin Hayes and Moses Malone. 10th would put him right behind Carmelo Anthony.
But we know he is a great scorer, as that is not why we are here. Durant wants to use this year with the Phoenix Suns to get rid of one narrative that seems to be surrounding the Suns’ big three of Durant, Booker, and Beal. And really, just superstars around the league.
“There’s this perception that guys that are superstars in this league don’t play defense,” Durant said in a recent practice. “Even though we can do whatever we want on offense, we still want to be able to make sure we’re there for our teammates on that other side of the ball.”
KD on this very topic last week: "There's this perception that guys that are superstars in this league don't play defense....Even though we can do whatever we want on offense, we still want to be able to make sure we're there for our teammates on that other side of the ball." pic.twitter.com/FuaezF1jkR
— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) October 18, 2023
Durant is not an otherworldly defender by any means. He is not a guy that will make an All-NBA team, barring any crazy developments. However, he isn’t a guy that offenses can just pick out and go at. He is a competent defender, and his length helps in that aspect.
The same can be said about the other two guys as well. Booker isn’t an amazing defender, but he plays hard on that side of the floor, and that’s more than what you can ask of him. We saw him in the preseason hustling his tail off. I think this team will surprise some people with how good they are on defense. The bad news, though, is that Bradley Beal will miss game one against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night.