Mark Cuban in favor of Kevin Durant’s move to the Warriors
Mark Cuban believes the Golden State Warriors signing Kevin Durant will be a net positive for the NBA.
Kevin Durant’s decision to join the Golden State Warriors will continue to be the major talking point of the NBA offseason. The addition would appear to make Golden State the super-est of superteams. Durant — one of the best players of his generation — is in his prime. Back-to-back NBA MVP Steph Curry, and All-Stars Klay Thompson and Darymond Green are all in their primes too.
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, who is always up for offering his two cents, sees this as a move that will only increase interest in the league. In response to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver calling for changes to the league’s collective bargaining agreement to prevent such moves, Cuban told ESPN, “They become the villain. Just like when LeBron James went to Miami, I loved that there was a villain…I’m fine with that. Everybody’s going to root for them to lose.”
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Excepting Warriors fans, Cuban appears to be right in predicting that most NBA fans will not want to see the newly minted superteam win. Responses to Durant’s decision have fallen into two camps among analysts and fans: Those who believe Durant is free to do what he feels is best for his career, and those who believe he should want to beat the Warriors instead of joining them.
If winning is the ultimate goal in professional sports, it’s hard to fault Durant for making the move. It will certainly be interesting to see if any team in the Western Conference can make a dent in the Warriors’ freshly improved armor.
There was also something underlining Cuban’s comments: His Mavericks benefited from Durant joining Golden State. They were able to add Golden State cast-off Harrison Barnes when the Warriors declined to match Dallas’ offer for him. This came on the heels of the Mavericks acquiring another former Golden State starter, Andrew Bogut, in a trade.
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