In what has to be the most shocking move of this years free agent period, Kevin Durant, a.k.a. Durantula, a.k.a. The Slim Reaper has decided to leave OKC and join up with the Golden State Warriors.  This has sent shockwaves throughout the sports world today.  So what does this mean?  Well, it tips the scales back in Golden State’s favor.  After blowing a 3-1 lead to the Cleveland Cavaliers in this year’s NBA Finals, some glaring weaknesses were exposed by the Cavs, which lead to Golden State’s front office aggressively pursuing the 2014 MVP.

Durant joins the Splash Brothers to form one of the most prolific outside shooting trios in NBA history.  But why?  Why would KD leave a team that was 1 game away from gaining a trip to The Finals to join the team that defeated them in 7 games?  In my estimation it’s a little bit of a cop out.

Durant and Westbrook formed one of the most prolific duos in the league.  They gave the Warriors fits in the Western Conference Finals and with the continued development of Steven Adams and Enis Kanter, they seemed to be well on the way to getting back to the NBA Finals sooner, rather than later.  They traded away Serge Ibaka for Victor Oladipo, which appeared to make way for Steven Adams, and added a perimeter defender in Oladipo.

But after having a phone conversation with The Logo, Jerry West, Durant decided that he wanted the opportunity to get to The Finals next season.  West told Durant how his own 1-8 Finals record haunts him to this day.  Durant doesn’t want to be added to the list of great players with no ring.  Players like Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley, Karl Malone, and John Stockton.

There was a time when players relished playing against, and beating their rivals.  Magic and Larry Bird loved competing against each other.  Jordan and Ewing enjoyed their battles, and the list goes on.  Now we have guys banding together to form these super teams.  Everyone wants to play with their friends or contemporaries and that’s just WEAK.  This is exactly what the league was trying to prevent when the salary cap was instituted.  But now players have engaged in colluding together to create the team of their desires.

Is it unfair? No!  But it used to be that a super team was created and developed through the draft.  Chemistry was developed over time, and a dynasty was formed.  This is how the Celtics of the ’50s and ’60s did it, how the Showtime Lakers of the ’80s did it, and how the Bulls of the ’90s were put together.  You might have 1 key trade or free agent signing, but you didn’t have players meeting together to develop a plan on how they could play together.

I wish KD luck in his new home, but he’s lost a little respect in my eyes.  Vegas now has the Warriors as 2-3 favorites to win the NBA title next season, but what happens if the Warriors DON’T win?  KD is only signing a 2-yr/$54 million dollar deal, with the 2nd year being a player option.  Will he become a gypsy and move from team to team chasing rings?  Only time will tell, but for a player that I once thought had one of the biggest hearts in the game today, this is a pretty heartless move.

But I guess if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.