James Harden passed Larry Bird on the all-time top scorer list on Saturday night. Kevin Durant mentioned the Celtic legend in his most recent episode of ETCs, a podcast that he hosts on The Boardroom Podcast Network. He described some of the impacts of previous generations on the game and how it created the culture.
Durant understands the rivalry between players when it comes to playing. Everyone desperately wants to win. Although many of these moments are not shown during the regular season, the tension always increases in the playoffs, when games are more important. In the past, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird challenged each other and things were not always friendly. When Michael Jordan comes on the scene, forget the idea of a friendship if you were against him on the court.
“The Magics, the Birds, the Jordan, they created that brotherhood among the league,” said Durant.
The younger generations grew up seeing these bitter rivals leaving everything out on the court, even if it meant not being friendly all the time. Basketball fans ended up witnessing how these basketball legends ended up admiring each other’s games over time. Instead of showing hatred for each other, they showed appreciation for each other and that fraternity between them inspired the younger generations.
This did not change Durant’s mindset of wanting to belong to the league when he was young.
“I felt like I had a fight with Kobe Bryant, but he didn’t even know I had this fight – as you get older, you see these guys as if they’re sharpening you and making you better.
… When Bron is going to score 50 points or James Harden has 60 points, I’m thinking … how can I beat him just to be better … how can I keep my level as well – it’s a healthy competition. “
