Being one of the league’s best scorers and joining the best scoring team in the league is a serious transition. Kevin Durant’s transition into the way the Golden State Warriors play, and score, is the leading attraction of the 2016-17 NBA season.
Getting his feet wet with his new team at Warriors camp, Durant notices that his teammates want him being more aggressive already, via Ethan Sherwood Strauss of ESPN:
“Yeah, I shot a lot today, and Draymond told me I wasn’t aggressive enough,” said Durant
Green was “just basically telling me to shoot more,” Durant said.
“So everybody’s trying to make me feel comfortable. Coming from me, I’m just trying to help everybody else out. But when you have teammates that are unselfish and want you to do well, it shows, man. It shows out on the floor as well.”
Naturally, much has been made about how Durant’s presence will affect the usage of Golden State’s other stars. Klay Thompson, admittedly “in awe” of his new teammate, has also been adamant about not needing to sacrifice anything in his game with Durant on the team. Stephen Curry has also talked about not needing to change his game with Durant in the mix.
There are enough touches and shots to go around between Curry, Thompson, and Durant. As long as it comes from the selfless brand of basketball they’ve cultivated, the Warriors will look terrifying.
Durant can play that brand of basketball and still be a scorer. That’s what they want him to do.
“That’s why they wanted me here! They want me to come out here and be myself. I’m not going to play timid or not step on anyone’s toes, but I’m still going to be myself,” he said. “Nobody’s telling me I’m shooting too much. They want me to be myself out there.”
