Ranking the top 100 NBA players — 1. Kevin Durant
Kevin Durant returned from a ruptured Achilles, which is notoriously difficult to return from, and looked… pretty damn good. The Nets probably would have won the championship if not for injuries, and Durant reminded everyone of his greatness in the second round, where he basically went shot-for-shot with the entire Bucks roster.
Right next to LeBron and Curry, Durant is a cornerstone player of his generation. He blends size and offensive skill in a way few, if any NBA players ever have. He’s not-so-secretly a 7-footer, but he can out-shoot anyone. His release point is basically impossible to contest, and his off-the-dribble repertoire rivals any guard.
Durant has developed into a solid playmaker and someone who consistently elevates teammates. There is no better individual scorer in the NBA. If you need a bucket, the odds are overwhelmingly in favor of Durant getting one. He doesn’t really have a “weakness” offensively. There isn’t a spot on the floor where he struggles to score, and there isn’t some underlying flaw that defenses strive to exploit. Durant is smart, poised, and gifted beyond measure.
Last season, he averaged 26.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 5.6 assists on .537/.450/.882 shooting splits. Again, that’s just absurd efficiency when you consider Durant’s offensive workload and the difficulty of shots taken. Not that Durant makes any shot look difficult. In fact, it’s probably just easy for him to hit contested jumpers. So maybe, it’s not so absurd. It’s just in line with his talent level.