Kevin Durant has been the target of constant criticism from Charles Barkley, who calls him a “follower” rather than a leader and casts doubt on his ability to lead. It’s no secret that the two have been tense as a result of their divide.
Barkley offered his thoughts on Phoenix Suns leadership along with Taylor Rooks and Draymond Green during the alternate broadcast of the All-Star Game. He acknowledged that Devin Booker must take the lead even though he preferred Durant to do so, pointing out that the former hasn’t done so in his career.
The NBA on TNT pundit questioned Durant’s capacity to assume leadership roles, pointing out that he wasn’t up to the duties during his prior trips in Oklahoma City/Seattle, Golden State, Brooklyn, and now Phoenix. He didn’t want to come across as disparaging Durant.
Although Durant has long been recognized for leading by example and selecting his moments to speak up, he did not directly address the remarks Barkley made over the weekend in Indiana in an interview with his manager, Rich Kleiman, which was made public on Tuesday by Durant’s media brand Boardroom.
It’s no secret that Barkley believes Durant doesn’t lead enough, and he’s not afraid to be the first NBA media member to voice this opinion.
Now that Durant was being questioned directly about these remarks, he decided to go after Barkley.
“It’s difficult for them to talk about what I do when they’re not here, because I feel like a lot of people on TV never go to the gym or the games,” Durant remarked. It’s merely a feature of TV. They required something to break up the segment. Therefore, people discuss some bad****, but if you’re not in the gym with me, I don’t respect your viewpoint.
Barkley is known for his ability to engage in heated debates, so it’s possible that he will discuss Durant’s new remarks on Inside the NBA given his history of criticizing the player. And it’s practically a given that Sir Charles will respond when the Suns vs. Dallas Mavericks game takes center stage on TNT on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET.
All bets are off because they have previously criticized Durant and his leadership style, but it’s likely that this conflict will only gain more traction in the basketball world after JJ Redick, and wherever he is feuding with this week, naturally.
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