Kevin Durant

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Lore & Background

Durant was heavily recruited in high school. He played one season of college basketball for the Texas Longhorns, during which he won numerous year-end awards and became the first freshman to be named Naismith College Player of the Year. Durant was selected as the second overall pick by the Seattle SuperSonics in the 2007 NBA draft. He played nine seasons with the franchise (which became the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2008), leading them to a Finals appearance in 2012 and winning the MVP award for the 2013–2014 season. In a controversial move, he later signed with the Golden State Warriors in 2016, who had won a record 73 regular season games the previous year. Durant won consecutive NBA championships and Finals MVPs in 2017 and 2018. After sustaining an Achilles injury in the 2019 NBA Finals, he joined the Brooklyn Nets as a free agent that summer. Following disagreements with the Nets' front office, he requested a trade during the 2022 offseason and was traded to the Phoenix Suns the following year. After two full seasons with Phoenix, Durant was traded to the Houston Rockets in July 2025.

In Their Own Story

The defining moment of Durant's first season came during his debut against the Oklahoma City Thunder on November 3, where he poured in 39 points to secure a 26-point victory. Later that season, on January 26, he made history by becoming one of four Warriors selected to the All-Star Game, the first time Golden State had achieved this feat and only the eighth time in NBA history a single team had four players in the game. In the playoffs, his scoring ability was relentless; against the Jazz, his 38-point performance in Game 3 was pivotal. In the Finals, he silenced critics by winning the NBA Finals MVP award, becoming just the third Warrior to ever win the honor, cementing his legacy as the key piece that turned a great team into an unstoppable force.

Reader's Guide

Durant was born on September 29, 1988, in Washington, D.C. He played one season of college basketball for the Texas Longhorns. He was selected second overall in the 2007 NBA draft by the Seattle SuperSonics. He played nine seasons with the franchise (which became the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2008). He signed with the Golden State Warriors in 2016 and won consecutive NBA championships and Finals MVPs in 2017 and 2018. He joined the Brooklyn Nets in 2019, was traded to the Phoenix Suns in 2023, and traded to the Houston Rockets in July 2025.

Did You Know?

• Durant is the only male basketball player to win four Olympic gold medals.
• He was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team in 2021.
• Durant ranks fifth among NBA career scoring leaders.
• He was the first freshman to be named Naismith College Player of the Year.