Should Phoenix FULFILL Kevin Durant’s REQUEST? 🤔 + LeBron CONDEMNS ‘ring culture’ 👀 | First Take

Should Phoenix FULFILL Kevin Durant’s REQUEST? 🤔 + LeBron CONDEMNS ‘ring culture’ 👀 | First Take

kevin Durant will most likely dawn a new uniform next season as he has a very clear picture of where he’d like to end up now according to Arsham Strania the Heat the Spurs the Rockets are KD’s preferred destinations and that he has no desire to play for the Timberwolves Mad Dog should Phoenix help KD out and send him where he wants to go in a trade why did he win a championship in Phoenix that I missed has he ever won a playoff game for the Suns no they were swept by Minnesota and this year they didn’t even get into the postseason they owe KD absolutely nothing warriors you can make an argument he helped them win two championships what did KD do for the Phoenix franchise i don’t understand what what did he do he has left no legacy there to speak of they’ve had you know Kevin Johnson left a beggar legacy tom Chambers Paul Westfall Dennis Johnson Booker they’ve left bigger legacies in Phoenix than KD does so the idea now you want to tell me contractually KD won’t go somewhere so you’re in a tricky spot you can argue that that’s not the that’s not the question though the question is does Phoenix owe a this is not Ray Bourke leaving a Bruins let’s get him to Colorado so he can win a Stanley Cup championship he’s done nothing in Phoenix in the big picture they haven’t won they didn’t even make the playoffs this year and last year in the first round he was completely outclassed by the Timberwolves they got routed in four straight games so now we got to make sure that KD gets what he wants nonsense i wouldn’t do that if I was the son management i’m gonna make the best deal for my team and if KD ends up what’s the in New Orleans deal with it there you go jeez doggy uh what’s the original question Molly is oh the word that we’re using oh um yeah yeah should they send him to his pref essentially should should I didn’t even ask the question because I think Mad Dog just went but but should they help him out and send him to his preferred destination should Phoenix pick those three spots of the um that he just wants to go to San Antonio or Miami um I I I personally say meet in the middle because I don’t understand where all the heat came from on your end Mad Dog like I I understand that Phoenix needs to put themselves in the best position moving forward but if the deal can be done within those preferences from KD why not like I don’t understand why you have to intentionally strike an adversarial relationship now if it absolutely cannot be done Phoenix obviously looking at their future moving forward and KD is clearly trying to get out of dodge but it’s not as if yes he did not bring a championship to that organization but he’s been available you look at the numbers when he’s been on the floor for this team the record is I believe it’s 33 and 29 when he played it’s dismal when he did not play so it’s not as if he was in the organization and was problematic if you can do a deal where both sides are like “All right cool we’ll compromise we’ll meet in the middle.” I would think that is the best course of action because I don’t think you need to have an unnecessarily adversarial relationship with one of our games great doggy you have to take you have to take into consideration uh doggy the the circumstances not just the individual as an individual Kevin Durant is a Hall of Famer the brother is a two-time champion in the two-time NBA Finals MVP and one of the greatest scorers this game has ever seen in his mid30s he’s fresh off of averaging nearly 27 a game on 52% shooting and nearly 40% from three-point range and nearly 90% from the free throw line when we look at Phoenix the 20 games that he missed or so they were like three and 17 yep but they were like 33 they were like 33 and 28 or something like that with him on the basketball court so they desperately need him when he’s there the bottom line is that you can’t blame him for what has transpired with the Phoenix Suns what kind of thing did you build around him now I got on Matt Ishbia the owner but I think that he’s steering things in the right direction but to to Monty Williams is the coach there that took you to the finals you take over ownership you get rid of him you hire Frank Vogle who won a championship just a couple of years earlier with the Los Angeles Lakers and you get rid of him after one season you bring in Mike Bddenhoer who won a championship after Frank Vogle won his championship in the bubble he wanted a championship the next year you signed him to a five-year deal you get rid of him after one year and so there are certain things that one could easily argue is beyond Kevin Durant’s control now some people might say when you’re a superstar of his caliber you could have done more to make things right fair enough i understand that but let’s not look at him like this is a brother that’s a liability we can’t talk about Kevin Durant like that you won’t say he’s not old fine but because they have Bradley Beal who has a no trade clause and clearly Devin Booker is younger and he’s the face of the franchise and you’re not getting rid of him in order to improve your roster the only choice you have is to unload KD now you unload KD for the best assets possible the flip side to it is that if the best asset possible is the Heat the Spurs or the Rockets in terms of what they’re offering why wouldn’t you do that that’s a different for him as well but what I’m saying is is that what I’m saying is of course it has to work for you too but there’s nothing wrong with looking out for him in the process because he’s not some truckulent individual who didn’t give a damn about the franchise and go on the basketball court and failed to perform he did you know he he he he did a lot okay he was an allw world player there’s no question about that it’s just that they don’t have a team steve here’s the bottom line durant gets valued more he’s not a two go he He’s He gets valued on a different level because who he is was he successful his two-year tenure in Phoenix would it be deemed a success no not at all i just s ring culture and it being a team sport well how about just making the playoffs and winning a couple of games around that said that How about just being How about being competent in postseason play and I’m not talking about the act we’re not talking about him but I’m saying you’re just acting like they should just throw him out with the bath water and just say the hell i’m saying I’m saying but what if what I’m saying if if look at the teams that he wants to go to and see if they’re offering you equitable compensation i’ll give you that i’m saying there’s nothing wrong with that i’ll give you that that’s all I’m saying that’s all I’ll give you that but if it if it turns out that Miami San Antonio and Houston are offering less than the New Orleans Pelicans he’s going to the New Orleans Pelicans they owe Durant absolutely zero this idea that we’re going to go plate Durant why what did he do for the Suns if you walk down Time out time out if New Orleans has the exact same package as Miami has are you okay sending him to Miami exact same let’s say it the money line be okay with that okay you’re saying you’re looking I’m not going to spite them you’re looking at preferred destinations if those don’t work you need to make a business decision but the idea that we got to Here’s what bothers me durant who left the war who left OKC when they on the cusp of winning a championship 3-1 the year he left he left OKC he left the He left the the Warriors he demanded to be traded from the Nets and now he’s out of Phoenix i mean really now we’re going to have oh these are the three spots I want to go how about Durant say you know what send me to a team that’s best for you and I’m going to go win for that team how about he say that for one well no how about he say that you guys are way too pro player you guys are way You got to look at it from a team perspective you got to look at it from a team what did he do for the Phoenix Suns did they win they make the playoffs they do anything we agree with you though we’re agree with you first try the preferred destinations if it doesn’t work out if all things aren’t equal doesn’t work out then we look elsewhere and you make a business decision i I Yeah I don’t think I’m Doesn’t help anybody don’t treat him like he was Don’t treat All I’m saying is don’t treat him like he was a cancer to the team and he was the reason that they had problems they had problems in spite of him but if other cats came to do their job the way that he came to do his job they would have been better they didn’t do that and as a result you got to move him on because that’s the way you can get equitable compensation for him you don’t have a chance of improving your team without getting rid of Kevin Durant but you don’t have to throw him out with the bath water and act like he was a cancer to the team i think he doesn’t deserve that steve this is going to be his fifth team in his career for an alltime great in Oklahoma City hold on he was loved in Oklahoma City won two chips and then what hold on hold he won two chips and he went well okay you want to call it failure I got you but the man did go to a fin he went to a conference he went to several conference finals went to a couple conference finals went to an NBA champion finals as well but he didn’t win a championship in Oklahoma City he won back-to-back titles in OK in Golden State and he would have won a third had he not tore his Achilles and then he goes to Brooklyn without Kyrie and with James Harded injured if he wore a size 13 if he had size 12 shoes instead of a tied 13 they had went to the finals and had awarded that year so we can’t ignore that and act like the brother ain’t KD and we also can’t ignore the fact that when he left we also can’t ignore the fact that when he went OKC they were 3-1 up on Golden State and what’s the team he decides to go play for golden State let’s not forget that either he joined a team that he couldn’t beat in a conference final with a 3-1 lead and an eight-point lead in game six at home let’s not forget that either you just brought that up more than me who brought that up more than me but that still doesn’t negate the fact that he’s one of the greatest players in the world still remember Stephen A called it the weakest one apologized to his mom where were you we’re we’re past all that that was a time oh my goodness the ring is a team accomplishment i don’t know where it started it’s just uh it’s a long conversation especially when it comes to like you know me individually i don’t know why it’s discussed so much in our sport you tell me you know Allan Iverson and Charles Barkley and Steve Nash you know you know our f wasn’t unbelievable like oh they can’t be talked about or discussed with these guys is because this guy won one ring or won two rings or one like it’s just it’s just weird to me it’s like saying Pton Manning can’t be in the same room with Brady or Mahomes because he only has one ring barry Bonds never won a World Series and you can’t sit here and tell me that he’s not the greatest baseball player to ever touch a bat all right PK you haven’t weighed in on this conversation want to get your thoughts on what LeBron had to say about ring culture uh well this is this is very easy for me and and this is why I don’t I don’t put him ahead of Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant for me um it’s the approach to the game and to me in some ways it can be insulting to look at it as chips don’t matter why is it that other athletes aren’t seen as other athletes but the whole point of pro sports and team sports is to win and is to win a championship and that’s your dream when it starts out is to win we don’t want to change that like there’s no changing that so when people talk about Kobe being here and if he was here he would say this because the epitome of winning a championship is going through the grind people want to see the grind people want to see the struggle and for LeBron you know I’ll always be a fan of his because he’s an amazing athlete an amazing basketball player and he’s and he’s going to go down as one of the greats but to be an all-time great to be the greatest there’s a certain way how you win matters to me michael Jordan paying his dues putting his time not going somewhere else trying to win matters to me kobe Bryant doing the same Larry Bird doing the same Magic doing the same because I’m sorry what we see in today’s sports our kids as soon as there’s a struggle as soon as they don’t get that success right away they want to jump and go i’m calling my agent i need to go here i need to go there no sit your butt down i don’t know if I could swear on TV but you know what I was going to say sit your butt down and pay your dues sit your ass down and pay your dues put your time in trust the process if you’re the face of an organization that team invested in you at 18 they could have drafted anybody on the planet they’re investing in you to help them bring a championship to the city right it’s bigger than just you it’s bigger than that and I think we need to get athletes to understand that that winning is what pro sports is all about and how you win is important you want to go to other teams it’s going to change your legacy hopping around will change your legacy and what you’re referring to is ring chasing that’s what we call that well Durant’s a perfect example left Oklahoma City couldn’t win there he should have then he bails on Golden State and then he wins the two titles with Golden State that’s not the same that if he would have stayed in Oklahoma City and won a title there the rings at Golden State they won without him the rings with Golden State for is more significant without Durant than with Durant in my estimation he needed to win one at OKC and he didn’t do that that hurts him historically stephen A y’all are missing the big picture pk you couldn’t have said it better you’re absolutely on point but I’m going to tell you what you’re missing and I’m going to tell you doggy what you’re missing once again this is LeBron James trying to change a narrative trying to define how athletes should be critiqued and how athletes should be judged remember according to him all we do is talk negatively about players they don’t pay attention to all the positive things we say you could say things positively about players 99% of the time but point out something negative and all you’re doing is hating this is what they do now mind you when LeBron James was chasing the championship he had no problem with the importance of pursuing that goal he was chasing the championship and when he won his first title what did he say PK it’s about damn time it’s about damn time yep when he decided to depart from Miami after winning two championships okay and going to four straight NBA finals why did he go back to Cleveland because he had departed before delivering a championship to that city when he went to LA and Tinsel Town was there and they reminded him that all the great won championships in purple and gold what did he do he prioritized the championship how do we know that because he facilitated Anthony Davis coming to LA from New Orleans because he knew he couldn’t win without him okay look at all the changes that he’s induced over the years what has that been in pursuit of a championship then he talks about team and of course he’s right a team wins a championship of course collectively but there’s always a priority for the stars to get it done because your abilities are head and shoulders above the average Joe that’s why you’re who that that’s why you’re who you are so now that he’s achieved it what happens is is we sit here and we use him and we use predecessors people before him to judge in terms of defining the standard upon which we all use to judge greatness and to judge champions and to judge who are the truly great ones now he wants to come along and say that shouldn’t be important that shouldn’t be important because the objective is to make sure that we don’t get to judge the future the way we’re judging the present and the way we judge the past but those were the very things that made him great because if he wasn’t in pursuit of those things he may not have been as great as he ended up being but now you don’t want people in the future to be held to the same standard and that’s the difference between him because other Hall of Famers aren’t like that they don’t talk like that because they want you to hold them to the same they want you to hold people to the same standard we held them to when they wanted i know we have to go to break but I have to push back on one thing you said PK because you said it’s it’s how you get it done also matters for your legacy in terms of guys ring chasing and jumping teams for you use a little bit of uh lose a little bit of respect but with that being said if rings are paramount and that cost you so if you never win a ring then that shouldn’t hurt your legacy you were a phenomenal player if if I know correctly you didn’t win a Stanley Cup so does that hurt your legacy you did everything in your control to win one it’s a team game great great point Molly and I’m glad you said that because I almost forgot my last point is that we need to start putting more responsibility on coaches GMs and presidents cuz there’s a lot of athletes in all different types of sports that haven’t won championships and it’s not their fault and we know there’s politics in sports there’s guys scratching each other’s backs but you got to be held accountable when it happens conor McDavid should not have to subscribe to that type of nonsense he shouldn’t have to play on a team like that i’m sorry he should be in the finals and he should have a better opportunity to win a championship with a better team that’s on management to get their act together so we have to look at management just as much as we look at players when they don’t have chips there’s only so much you can control and not everybody’s like LeBron and is able to talk to management or McDavid and have that relationship with management yeah phenomenal point [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause]

Stephen A. Smith, Chris “Mad Dog” Russo and Monica McNutt join Molly Qerim on First Take to discuss Kevin Durant’s request to be traded from the Phoenix Suns to either the San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets or Miami Heat. Then, P.K. Subban joins to react to LeBron James’ comments on NBA “ring culture” and how the media puts such pressure on individual players to win a championship.

0:00 KD’s request
3:15 Stephen A. brings the stats
6:40 Monica disagrees with Mad Dog
9:50 LeBron’s comments
10:50 P.K. responds
13:15 “Y’all are missing the big picture”

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