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Plenty of rookie struggles and little help
Copyright 2009 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
Flashback: As the second pick of the 2007 NBA Draft, Durant landed with the Seattle SuperSonics and his reputation quickly took a hit. Observers began referring to the former NCAA star as a “chucker” just a few games into his rookie season.
Durant’s rookie season was in fact less than flattering. His 20.3 points per game were nice. But he shot just 43 percent from the field and just 28.8 percent from three-point range. The rookie took 17.1 shots per game, 2.6 of those from beyond the arc. He was a scorer but needed a lot of shots to get those points for a bad team. And there were plenty of those types of players in the league. Kevin Durant and the NBA were far from a tale of love at first sight. And there were reasons for that. But most experts, fans and media deliberately ignored them.
One reason enough was just the sight of Kevin Durant. It was clear that besides with his height he will not dominate anyone. To be successful, Durant needed to rely on his game intelligence, talent and skills. Many other members of Durant’s draft class could take over games with their strength or athleticism alone. Others were tough to defend with an explosiveness and leaping ability that provided plenty of easy baskets in the lane. And still other rookies had brute force and quick dynamic moves in the paint – making them nearly immovable forces in the block.
Kevin Durant, however, is a different type of player. His game relies on his shot. And that is based on timing, rhythm and confidence. A shooter is always at his best when his game is in a rhythm – and when he understands what’s going on around him and whether or not he will shoot before even getting the ball. Kevin Durant did not know much of this during his first year as an NBA professional. “I had to get used to the league first. Every young player who comes into the NBA has the same problem,” recalls Durant. “You ask yourself: ‘When should I shoot? Where are my spots and when do I start making my moves?’ That was the toughest part for me as a rookie.”
The games flashed by then 19-year-old. He regularly struggled with the physical style of the league, which wreaked havoc with his timing. It also stopped him from getting the ball where he wanted it on the court.
Another difficult aspect for Durant was a lack of a real mentor for him in Seattle. All-Stars Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis had just left the Sonics in the summer after having combined to score 48.8 points in 2006-07. And Durant would be responsible for filling much of that huge void. A good pass or drive, however, didn’t help too much if it came at the wrong time. So Durant was forced to score if the Sonics wanted to win even the occasional game. And it was scary how often he would regularly take very poor shots. But who else was going to do it in Seattle?
Both in his one season at the University of Texas and during high school, basketball life came easy for Durant. He was always taller than his opposing player and could see the floor without a problem. He also had an excellent shot and a feel for the game. If someone had a physical advantage on him, he could beat him with his understanding of the game, his quickness and his maturity. And the young star rarely had to defend in his early career. His wingspan and understanding of the game were enough to get rebounds and blocks. And coaches regularly put their top scorer on the side of the defense with the opponent’s least-dangerous scorer.
But that was not the case in the NBA. Durant’s first coach, P.J. Carlesimo, switched him from small forward to shooting guard. The coach did not want the physically disadvantaged Durant to be eaten alive by posting small forwards. Carlesimo thought that at just 215 pounds, Durant would have been bullied around not only by the likes of LeBron James (250), Paul Pierce (235) and Carmelo Anthony (230) but even slender players like Andrei Kirilenko (225). So Durant instead would be assigned to run after shooting guards who were all a head shorter than him. This was a hopeless assignment.
“Last season we had to tell Kevin for 48 minutes to stay in a deep defensive stance with his knees bent,” admitted Scott Brooks. The former NBA playmaker took over the coaching duties at Oklahoma City just 13 games into the current season. “But it’s not like Kevin didn’t want to defend as a rookie. People forget that he is 6-foot-9,” continued Brooks. “It’s not easy for him to cover smaller players.”
As Carlesimo’s assistant, Brooks followed closely Durant’s development. And he was convinced that it was counterproductive making Durant into a shooting guard. He may have been able to keep some distance on the wing and still block shots with his long arms. But he was helpless when trying to work through screens or guard players on the drive. At the same time, his main defensive attributes – defensive rebounding and blocked shots – were suffering. After grabbing 8.1 defensive boards and blocking 1.9 shots at Texas, Durant’s NBA numbers dropped to 3.5 defensive rebounds and 0.9 blocks.
The Kevin Durant project was in shambles after just a few months.
