It's been a great summer in many ways for Kevin Durant.
It's also been a not-so-great summer for Kevin Durant.
And as Yahoo's Chris Mannix recently wrote:
"Many in Golden State, team officials and players alike, have taken note of Durant's oddball offseason and are perplexed by it. They see a bright future for Durant in Oakland, league and team sources told The Vertical, and are bewildered as to why he is still addressing his past."
First, it was Durant's comments on The Bill Simmons Podcast about Under Armour.
Durant's words were meaningful enough that he and Steph Curry "had a conversation" about the topic.
Then it was his third-person disparaging tweets of the Oklahoma City franchise, Thunder players and head coach Billy Donovan.
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"I haven't slept in two days, two nights. I haven't ate. It's crazy, because I feel so (expletive) pissed at myself and I'm mad that I brought someone into it," Durant told USA Today Sports' Sam Amick. "I look like an idiot.
"My peers are going to look at me like an idiot. All the jokes – bring ‘em. I deserve it."
[POOLE: Trapped by social media monster, KD taught a harsh lesson]
Since winning the title and being named NBA Finals MVP, Durant:
- Received a congratulatory text from Barack Obama
- Was praised endlessly for sacrificing millions to help the Warriors retain Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston
- Got a mural of him soaring in for a dunk on a building in Oakland
- Set a Guinness world record while on a trip to India (although he received some backlash for his comments about India and issued an apology)
- Was honored with "Kevin Durant Day" in his hometown of Seat Pleasant, Maryland
He is also apparently a "Made Man" in Silicon Valley (read this awesome feature by Modern Luxury).
But when it comes to Durant's offseason, people are going to remember the negative stories more than the positive ones.
"I will scale back a little bit right now. Just focus on playing basketball," Durant said on Tuesday. "I want to move on."
Fortunately for Durant, the Warriors open training camp in two days...
Drew Shiller is the co-host of Warriors Outsiders and a Web Producer at NBC Sports Bay Area. Follow him on Twitter @DrewShiller
