Bob Myers looks back on telling Stephen Curry about Kevin Durant’s free agency in 2016.
In the aftermath of the 2016 NBA Finals, the Golden State Warriors were reeling after watching their 3-1 lead evaporate at the hands of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving. It was just a few months later that the Warriors shocked the world by signing Kevin Durant, but it was only by the humility of Stephen Curry that the move even happened at all. Speaking on ‘The TK Show,’ former Warriors executive Bob Myers shared the hidden details of his conversation with Curry after the 2016 Finals when he first learned that Kevin Durant’s arrival was a real possibility.
“I remember Curry coming in and looking at him and we were talking about the season and the team… At the end of it, I said, ‘Hey, what if Durant wanted to come?’ But the beauty of Curry is he looks me in the eye, he says, ‘You think he’d want to come here?’ I said, ‘I don’t know, but if he takes meetings, where are we at with it if it’s a possibility?’ And he looks me in the eye, says, ‘Yeah, for sure!’ That’s a lens into Curry’s selflessness because it’s his team, it’s his thing,” said Myers. “But many people would have said no, very quietly, and it would’ve never happened.”
Curry had just been crowned as the NBA’s first-ever unanimous MVP, and it seemed that people were finally catching on to just how great he was. For a player of his stature, it would make total sense to not want an established star like Kevin Durant to come in and challenge his authority on the team. Instead, Curry welcomed Durant with open arms and it resulted in back-to-back NBA championships.
Kevin Durant And Stephen Curry: One Of The Greatest Duos Ever
Durant’s move to the Warriors is still detested today by many fans, but there is no denying the dominance they displayed over the three-year span. After winning 73 games the season earlier, Kevin Durant’s arrival made the Warriors practically unbeatable at the time and everyone knew it. During their run together, KD and Curry led the Dubs to an impressive 182-64 record. In the postseason, they won 46 games, including two championships over the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2017 and 2018.
Ultimately, the Kevin Durant era was short-lived in Golden State after he left the team in 2019 to sign with the Brooklyn Nets. Even so, the Durant-era Warriors are widely regarded as one of the best teams ever assembled and it’s unlikely we will ever see a pair of teammates reach similar levels of success.
Steph Is The Champion Of Humility
Stephen Curry’s rise to stardom took the sports world by storm and it changed the very style of NBA basketball. Even today, as a 4x champion, 2x MVP, and one of the top 10 greatest players ever, Steph hasn’t lost the humility that allowed the Warriors to pursue Durant in 2016. In fact, Steph is constantly revered for his character and it’s one of the many things that makes him such a great leader on and off the court.
Going forward, it’s impossible to say for sure how long Steph can keep going like this but as long as he’s healthy and playing like himself, Golden State will always have a chance in the West. And thanks to Curry’s relentless drive to win, the Warriors will always be in a position where they can make some moves to beef up their talent.
