Monday, November 7th, 2011 at 12:40 pm  |  97 responses

Kevin Durant Finds the NBA Lockout ‘Sickening’


by Marcel Mutoni / @marcel_mutoni

Negotiations between owners and players have gone from ugly to near disastrous over the last few days.

There’s an ultimatum on the table from the League, which players are not too thrilled with (shocking, I know), and there’s no telling where things will stand once the NBA-imposed Wednesday deadline comes and goes.

Kevin Durant maintains that players will stand strong despite the NBA’s bullying tactics, and when asked for his thoughts about the current lockout, he didn’t hold back.

Durant spoke after playing in LaMarcus Aldridge’s charity game last night in Portland.

The Oregonian reports:

The show was a respite from the NBA lockout, which hit its 129th day Sunday. But the work stoppage was an unavoidable shadow over the game, which after all, would not have happened had the league’s owners not locked out the players on July 1 … Players expressed varying degrees of emotion about the lockout. Lakers guard Steve Blake – the former Blazer who still lives in Portland – said when asked about his views on the lockout talks, “I have no comments on that.”

Then he repeated the same phrase twice more to other lockout questions before adding, “I love basketball, and I’m playing tonight, so I’m happy about that.”

The event’s biggest national star, [Kevin] Durant (who scored 31 of his game-high 47 points in the second half), had stronger comments. “Sickening, man, just sickening,” he said of the latest developments. “Us players, we’ve sacrificed, we gave up money. We did what we have to do, now it’s on the owners. It looks like they’re not going to give in.”

With the 2011-’12 season hanging in the balance, both sides are now scrambling to come up with a workable solution. If they are unable to this week, the NBA lockout won’t just be “sickening” anymore. We’ll have to come up with much stronger terms.

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  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    Didn’t Allen say he was black at one point? I’m pretty sure he is.

  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    Allen is probably googleable if it is even important what his ethnicity is. He does write professionally in NOLA, normally a pretty personal & visible career

  • shutupallenp

    well hes not followed the link he posted on previous article. white guy blondish hair. he could always post a link to his profile on the dailynews again.

  • shutupallenp

    and if he isnt black doesnt that change your perspective on some of his racial commentary?

  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    No. His ethnicity has no effect on my perception of him. I just always assumed racial issues are more prominent in his life then mine, which leads to thinking about race more often. I only think he is black because I thought he ended up stating it during a conversation regarding race. But i could very well be mistaken, I’m not rainman.

  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    And pointing out somethin has racial undertones is not racist. Which is all I ever see allen do regarding the subject.

  • shutupallenp

    im not here to change public perception of him, just voicing my opinion on some of the opinions he has stated that i perceive and believe are racist. like i said i think hes a skilled writer, but he does more than just point out racial undertones. you see how i did that ? complimented him but still took a underhanded shot at him? he does it all the time, like i said very skilled indeed

  • Maniac

    Wow I haven’t been here in a while. You guys miss me? lol

  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    Oh so your just here to hate someone. And you think your also a very skilled writer because you think you and he use intelligent writing tricks – him being racist while at the same time speaking out against racism (lmao), and you, highly disliking him while still complimenting his writing ability. Got it.

  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    And Allen is black. That I now know thanks to the homIe Enigmatic who currently can’t post because he lives on a different planet. Alaska

  • Maniac

    First, LOL at the “shutupallenp” situation. I have little clue to how Allen can be perceived as a racist. I don’t care what ethnicity background a person has, if he speaks the truth then his opinion is legit. The truth does not have a color. With that said, I fully agree with Allen. Being a young black male, I can relate to what he is talking about. Too many young people (most specifically black males) are driven to some day become pro. Don’t get me wrong, there is a fine line between wanting to go pro and putting all your eggs in one basket. A lot of young black guys (my peers) BELIEVE that their only “way out” is either through drugs/gangs, music (most specifically rap), and professional basketball or football. That is fact. The significance of education is undervalued in the black community and simply stating that is not racist at all. It’s the truth.

  • Maniac

    The only “racist” comment I’ve seen on SLAM lately was some guy calling NBA players “hoodrats” lmao. I believe nbk commented on that. Do a lot of NBA players come from poor backgrounds? Yes. Do some NBA players have thuggish mentalities? Yes. Calling them hoodrats was not necessarily “inaccurate” lol, but it was used in the wrong context.

  • http://slamonline.com LakeShow

    I’m so confused about everything. Racist, white, black guy the has undertones of pointing out racism?? Whatever, I’m outtie. SLAM put some good ish up tomorrow. I was bored as h e ll today. Maniac, good to ‘see’ ya.

  • http://thetroyblog.com Teddy-the-Bear

    @ nbk: Yeah, I just remember some conversations he had with Jukai, I think, where he showed some knowledge.
    @ LA Huey: Did Spanny make racist comments? I can’t remember.
    Anyhow, shutupallenp calling Allenp racist is really odd.

  • http://slamonline.com datkid

    allenp is black… jesus why can’t we ban people? and shutupallenp is bulls22 until proven otherwise. in fact F*ck it. he’s bulls22 and nothing he says can be taken seriously.

  • http://www.twitter.com/nflem41 Nicolas Fleming

    I remember a lot of racist comments coming with the whole Uncle Tom/Duke thing, but that pales in comparison to the homophobic commenters.

  • http://www.facebook.com/#!/joe.l.brewer3 BlackPhantom

    LMAO “Allenp isn’t black”

  • http://www.facebook.com/#!/joe.l.brewer3 BlackPhantom

    I love reading Allen’s comments though, he’s always droppin’ knowledge. *sigh* But if I were part of the players I’d just take the current deal. It’s way better than MJ(and others)’s proposal of a 47% revenue split for the players(with his greedy a**)

  • http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/wizards/a-quick-guide-to-the-issues-of-the-nba-lockout/2011/10/11/gIQAon1ZbL_story.html unf*ckwitable

    Cosign nbk, Greek dude is by far the worst poster in history, he had some knowledge but 99% of the time he choose to forgo it in favour of his pro-euro anti american agenda. Then he started on Iverson and Starbury back when they were getting some headlines on slam and things just got ridiculous.

  • shutupallenp

    i see everyone else stating this man is black and it doesnt bother me, even though hes really not. and your cosign saying hes black because someone says so makes no sense. im not a skilled writer just aware that the words people write dont always show until you read between the lines. milk for the babes, and meat for the men. I just think its racist to say that a specific demographic shouldnt aspire to greatness because someone deems it impossible or a waste of their time. and newsflash, black people can be racist against black people to. just saying.

  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    Your an idiot. (yes I realize you didn’t insult me or provoke that, I’m just being honest)

  • shutupallenp

    and your a bigot and your wife hates you. Im sorry i insulted your klansman

  • http://www.bulls.com Enigmatic

    SMH

  • http://bulls.com shutup-shutupallenp-aka-airs

    if you aren’t bull22, you now have the prestigious honor of being the worst, most ignorant commenter on the site!
    congrats…to bull22, for we have found a person even less tolerable then you, huzzah!

  • http://www.TheBreakdownShow.com Dave Mendonca

    It’s a shame the lockout is preventing us from seeing guys like Kevin Durant do their thing. He’s been UNREAL during the off season at all these charity and exhibition games. Who wins an NBA title first? LeBron or KD? I’m putting my money on Mr. Durant. Just watch.

  • http://myspace.com/gametimeweezy Gametimeweezy

    @Allenp i help run a basketball league in a “poor community” and trust me the “NBA dream” is NOT the problem. BASKETBALL helps us to teach life lessons to those that HAVE NO resources to spend. Time away from the basketball court leads to more time in district court. And ALL our kids know school comes first. You’re being a hater. Unfortunately you probably were never good enough to get a scholarship so your views are pretty much biased. (plus it sounds like you think your BETTER than anyone who disagrees with you)

  • shutupallenp

    your entitled to your opinion. but remember when you make a statement that stereotypes a group of people that it is in fact racism. so by him saying yes i know most people that aspire to be pro athletes are black and they should focus their efforts elsewhere is racist as well. It sugar coats and over simplifies the struggle and dreams of a whole group of people

  • shutupallenp

    I guess im not the only one who recognizes his smug sense of superiority in his comments.

  • http://myspace.com/gametimeweezy Gametimeweezy

    That doesnt make him racist.. he’s just obviously separated from the realness off youth athletics IMPORTANCE in poor communities. And you’re disillusionment is a whole nother story…

  • http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/wizards/a-quick-guide-to-the-issues-of-the-nba-lockout/2011/10/11/gIQAon1ZbL_story.html unf*ckwitable

    @SUAP your an idiot bro.

  • http://cnbc.com JTaylor21

    RIP Smoking Joe Frazier. The city of Philadelphia should be ashamed of themselves, giving fake a** Rocky a statue but not one for a real boxing legend.

  • James Aka…

    I think i used to see some far worse posters on here, well before the greek dude. I remember when Etan Thomas used to post stuff on here, and the comment section would collect all manner of racist nuts.

    Anyway, as to the matter at hand, maybe the players should use their current clout to fight back for real. I know Kobe loves his chopper, but if the top tier guys got together, and helped see the other guys through basic needs (as opposed to kenny anderson’s cars), for a while longer, and start using their brand to turn these side games into real revenue generating entertainment, perhaps they could get some leverage back. Also, f michael jordan for demonstrating that the only game that matters is his. You can argue about player vs. owners from a the point of view of capital versus labour, but when you as a player got all of your capital from your brand and from your labour, you’ve got to be pretty selfish to put the shoe on the other foot a decade later.

  • http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/wizards/a-quick-guide-to-the-issues-of-the-nba-lockout/2011/10/11/gIQAon1ZbL_story.html unf*ckwitable

    RIP Joe.

  • http://www.slamonline.com house

    Gametimeweezy with the truth right there imo.

  • http://bulls.com airs

    gametimeweezy and allenp both have valid points, the problem with both however is that you can’t lump everybody into one group.
    there are those children whose hoop dreams are everything they pour their hearts into, leaving them with little else. however, the truth is out of billions of people, a few hundred will actually make it to the NBA, and a few other thousand will go pro elsewhere.
    but then there are other children who use hoops as a way to learn teamwork and other ‘life lessons’, and sometimes to get a scholarship to get a degree, not only a foot into the nba.

  • http://djfklsfl.com Jukai

    Spanny wasn’t “dumb” like guys like The Seed and Bull22 and the like… but he was delusional. He honestly thought Toni Kukoc was at one point a top-5 player in the world (during the time when Jordan, Bird, Magic, Olajuwon, Isiah, King, Stockton, Malone, Barkley, Pippen, Drexler, Robinson, Ewing etc. all played) and when I asked why he didn’t make it, he could not give me a reasonable explanation. He just KNEW that Kukoc was one of the best.
    So yeah, he wasn’t a dumb person… but he was dumb when it came to basketball. I don’t think he was racist, but he was immensely nationalistic. If Iverson was raised in Europe but acted the exact same way, he would have loved Iverson.

  • http://slamonline.com datkid

    cosign airs.

  • Justin

    I can’t believe this thread turned into a “Is AllenP black?” argument

  • http://www.fiba.com Darksaber

    I can’t believe the Notorious S.P.A.N.N.Y is still being brought up on Slamonline.

  • Harlem_World

    Allen P is white? Who knew? lol. Jokes aside, youth sports is about balance, but you can’t ever underestimate basketballs ability to hook a kid who would otherwise get caught up in what else goes on in our neighborhoods. So only a small percentage ever make it to college, let alone pro’s – so what? The real value is the LIFE SKILLS coaches all over the country are able to deliver to these kids through basketball that end up being the difference between whether they make it or not in life, not basketball. That’s the REAL value of this game. Nobody ever did a percentage study on how many hundreds of thousands…actually millions, of kids over the years who have been steered towards something better because of what they learned through basketball. Real talk.

  • thegfunk

    There is only once race and that is the human race…..but then there is culture, ideology and a whole load of other bs that people subscribe to.

  • http://www.slamonline.com UNFROZEN CAVEMAN LAWYER

    CO SIGN JTAYLOR TO THE FULLEST! IVE ALWAYS SAID THAT. IF ONLY FUTCH WOULDVE LET JOE FIGHT THE 15TH ROUND IN MANILLA, HE MIGHT HAVE WON, HE WOULD HAVE BEEN CHAMPIONED AS THE GREATEST EVER. HE WAS STILL ONE OF THE BEST OF ALL TIME. SO MUCH HEART AND DETERMINATION. ALI WAS SUCH A MAJOR DIKK TO JOE FOR DECADES. JOE WAS THE BLACKEST MAN EVER, HIS PARENTS WERE SHARECROPPERS IN S CAROLINA, YET, SOMEHOW, ALI CONVINCED PEOPLE THAT JOE REPRESENTS UNCLE TOMS. … ALI LATER APOLOGIZED FOR ALL THAT, BUT IT STILL HURT JOE DEEPLY. …… HERES TO SMOKIN JOE FRAZIER, YOU GET THE LIFE YOU MAKE FOR YOURSELF!

  • http://www.slamonline.com UNFROZEN CAVEMAN LAWYER

    ALLEN ISNT WHITE? LANGS NOT BLACK? SPANNY WAS BAD, BUT I THINK CHUKAZ FROM A FEW YEARS AGO WAS WORSE.

  • http://t.co/ulnwjShF Allenp

    I don’t cover the knicks.
    And I never played basketball or any sport in college.
    I think y’all have me confused with someone else.
    And yeah, I’m black.
    I cannot stress how hilarious it is that this has become a point of contention. Given my previous posting history on this site, this is the most unlikely scenario of ALL-TIME.

  • http://t.co/ulnwjShF Allenp

    And I went to school on an academic scholarship.

  • http://t.co/ulnwjShF Allenp

    Man, I love youth sports. And I’m not against them at all. And, since it’s important, I played sports in high school, was quite good, and could have gone to school on a football scholly, if that was the plan.
    Instead, I took a full ride academically.
    My point, which seems to have offended folks, was that too many kids believe that going to the NBA is a an intelligent career plan. It’s stupid.
    There are 450 spots in the NBA.
    Like 1700 or 1800 spots in the NFL.
    Way too many kids see those spots as their potential destiny instead of getting a solid educational foundation. Not all kids are being failed, but too many are. Too many kids are being pushed on to the “conveyor belt” of college and high school athletics and when their Big League dreams crumble, they are left without a quality education or good job prospects.
    I see it as a problem. Some of you disagree. Cool.

  • http://slamonline.com Allenp

    I posted a long comment but I think it disappeared.
    Anyway, I’m not against youth sports. I’m against the focus on athletics in the black community, particularly the focus on “going pro.”
    I played youth sports. I hate a great time doing it. My two sons will play youth sports. But, unless they show an IMMENSE talent I will never encourage them to think about being a professional athlete, and even if they do show that talent, they will be forced to put sports SECOND in their lives.
    It’s not that only black people care about sports. It’s that black people have a much harder way to go to get a quality education in this country because of the way the system is set up, and we don’t need to add the additional obstacle of encouraging so many of our children to focus on the 450 jobs in the NBA or the 1800 jobs in the NFL. It’s doing them a disservice. It’s like telling them to concentrate on strategies for winning the Powerball.

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