Kevin Durant left the Oklahoma City Thunder to join the Golden State Warriors over the summer and immediately the Dubs are pigeon holed as the team to beat. With KD, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green all on the same squad, on paper, it’s hard to pick against them.
But one thing paper doesn’t measure is the mental aspect of a team. Guys liking each other is a big thing when it comes to contending for playoff spots and winning titles. There needs to be some sense of comradery and brotherhood on a team and having a close relationship with teammates is imperative. That’s something Kevin Durant saw up close over the summer.
As a member of the Gold Medal winning USA Men’s Olympics Basketball team, he was able to witness a relationship like that up close. The ‘bromance’ between the Toronto Raptors All-Star backcourt of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan was something KD witnessed first hand and something he wants for himself, according to a Raptors assistant coach.
Following from Chris O’Leary of the ‘Toronto Star’.
When Rex Kalamian’s phone buzzed one day in August, the Toronto Raptors assistant coach wasn’t surprised to see a text from Kevin Durant.
The two had bonded in Kalamian’s six seasons as an assistant with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The two have stayed in touch in the year since Kalamian made the move to Toronto, and since Durant made his bold move to the Golden State Warriors this summer. The content of Durant’s text did surprise the coach that day, though.
“Your two guys are the best. I’m jealous of their relationship, the way they get along with each other and the way they play together. The way they enjoy each other, it’s great,” Kalamian said of that text on Monday, as the Raptors finished up their practice. Durant, all the way from the Olympics in Rio, was in awe of the friendship that Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan had on display with the U.S. men’s basketball team.
“I think it’s kind of what he wants,” Kalamian continued. “He wants that bond with someone . . . and I think he’s going to find that.
“Early on in OKC, we had that.”
