National Basketball Association

Kevin Durant's NBA legacy is yet to be written

Published Jul. 6, 2016 3:11 p.m. ET

foxsports

The dust from Kevin Durant's free agency mushroom cloud appears to finally be settling, but the view of how this will shape his legacy could not be any more obscure.

There are two schools of thought to consider.

The first one will likely resonate with every Oklahoma City Thunder fan on Planet Earth: Durant took the easy way out, he'd rather win a championship for himself than finish what he built in the city that groomed his career and supported him through thick-and-thin.

Let's say, hypothetically, this is a true postulation. What could have possibly been running through Durant's head that empowered him to think sabotaging his legacy amongst those fans was a good idea? Here are three guesses:

1) Kevin Durant did not want to be known as this generation's Patrick Ewing, the best player of the era to never win a championship.

2) A ring is a ring no matter how and where you get it. All that matters is the ring.

3) Despite the initial vitriol from the masses, playing for the dynasty-primed Golden State Warriors is an advantageous business decision in the long term.

"Jordan never did this" because an argument can be made that he was already on one of the best team(s) in the NBA -- evident by the Chicago Bulls making it the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals and the Eastern Conference Semis in 1995 without him on the roster.

"Kobe never did this" couldn't be any further from the truth -- he publicly admitted to The LA Times that he demanded a trade to the Chicago Bulls in 2007 after three "disgruntled" seasons with the Lakers, and as a result: would have been sent to the Detroit Pistons if he had not exercised his no-trade clause.

When it comes to 'tarnished legacies' -- does requesting a trade not count the same as signing with another franchise? Apparently not, because Kobe's statue outside of STAPLES Center is not going to have a giant gold asterisk attached to its head with the words "BUT DON'T FORGET HE WANTED TO LEAVE US IN 2007!" inscribed for the world to see.

Yes, Kevin Durant turned down the option to finish basketball's David (OKC) vs. Goliath (GSW) chronicle to pursue a less-dramatic narrative -- but that is a choice he earned.

He not only earned it because the current NBA collective bargaining agreement says he has the right, as an unrestricted free agent, to pick any team he wants to play for -- he earned it because he gave Oklahoma City nine years of full-hearted dedication to the franchise, nine years of MVP-level efficiency, nine years of infusing his own personal capital to better the community, and nine years of realistic championship hope.

Regardless of what happens from this point forward, "Unfinished Business" with the Thunder will always be a dark cloud that follows Durant around no matter what he accomplishes, where he goes, or what team he plays for.

Does everything he built in OKC get abrogated because he fell short before reaching the finish line?

Was his only job to win a championship for the franchise? Nothing in Durant's contract said he had to donate millions to the victims of the tornadoes that ravaged the entire metropolis of Oklahoma City, build basketball courts in areas accessible by underprivileged youth, or take an active role in the expansion of the Positive Tomorrows program for OKC homeless children.

While he doesn't have the championship accolades on the court that the fans would have hoped for at the beginning of his campaign, let's not act like Durant's tenure as a Thunder player was anything close to a failure -- as he was, without a doubt, a champion in more ways than one.

Durant will very likely continue to be a charitable and influential community figure in his new home in Northern California, he clearly has basketball aspirations that motivate every decision he makes.

Golden State, without a doubt, gives him the best opportunity to achieve what he desires most -- an NBA championship -- as the Warriors were the favorite (3/2 odds vs. Cleveland's 5/2 figure) to win next year's NBA title even before he agreed to sign with them earlier this week. With Durant on board, barring any major injuries to multiple Warriors players in the same season, the team will very likely continue to be the odds-on-favorites going into every season for the foreseeable future.

On paper, this is arguably the best basketball team of all-time.

But what needs to be said is that it doesn't matter if Durant took the "easy way out" to win a ring -- because nothing in this game is guaranteed -- just ask the 2003-2004 Los Angeles Lakers, 2010-2011 Miami Heat, and 1996-1997 Houston Rockets how being crowned champions before the season started turned out.

While it's up to fans to sort out their feelings on the move, Kevin Durant poured every ounce of his soul into making the Oklahoma City Thunder franchise better. Signing with the Warriors isn't an indication that he wishes to take an easier road, but, a statement that he's willing to do anything to obtain a championship -- something that will substantiate all of his achievements, past and present, both on and off the court.