Top 50: Kevin Durant, no. 8

The definitive ranking of the NBA’s best players.

by Ben Osborne

One of my favorite things about working for a magazine that covers basketball from high school through the pros is getting to watch players develop every step of the way, and see how my/our projections pan out. When I saw Kevin Durant play in high school, to be honest, I had my doubts. Not doubts about making the League or anything, especially because the scoring was obvious then, but his skinniness drove me to distraction and I could not project NBA greatness for him.

I was impressed like everyone else when I saw what Kevin did at Texas, but I still struggled to see superstardom (as usual, Aggrey knew better than me). By the time Oden v Durant came around, I was calling Durant a “future all-star,” but liked GO more (just check my comment on that Lang Link I just linked to). I thought his best-case scenario was to be the next T-Mac…

Today, nice as Mac was when healthy, I’m ready to call that career arc disappointing for Durant. I’m now firmly in the camp of: this guy barely has a ceiling. To the point that in this poll, I voted Durant 5th (I went: 1-LeBron, 2-Kobe, 3-Dwyane Wade, 4-Chris Paul), and I’m happily sacrificing my first-round pick in fantasy basketball to “keep” him after the promise he showed last season.

What’s the big deal with this guy that, honestly, few fans outside of Seattle or Oklahoma City have seen play more than a handful of times? Obviously the scoring ability is paramount. This 6-9, 230-pounder has the height, shooting touch, skills and mentality to be a 30+-ppg scorer this season. Talk to me about “defense winning championships” till your blue in the face; only a handful of guys on the planet can dream of scoring 30+ per game in the NBA. The rest of his game needs work, but at 6-9 with long arms and great instincts, I see no reason his rebounds, assists, steals and blocks per game won’t all improve this season (KD averaged 6.5, 2.8, 1.3 and 0.7, respectively, in these categories last year). I’m also not feeling the “he’s a horrendous defender” angle, as though he’s been in the League 10 years and we know how what his prime will be like in any part of the game. Kid just turned 21. Think he can’t work his way into being, at worst, an average defender? Come on.

Knowing this piece was due soon, and because of his aforementioned status on my fantasy team, I’ve had Durant on the brain for the past couple weeks. To that end, I liked seeing John Hollinger, a voice I trust more often than not, project Durant as fifth in the League in PER this season.

I also enjoyed the New York Times’ Jonathan Abrams portrait of a humble young man about to become an NBA superstar while playing in a city where he often goes unrecognized.

I did not really enjoy the controversy surrounding the TrueHoop-inspired debate about his value in relation to his +/-, primarily because of the same reasons I defended his defense: it’s too early. Kevin Durant has been the best player, and played the most minutes, on a terrible team for two years running. Now that he has learned the game more, and the talent around him has grown as well, I expect the Thunder to improve, and all of Kevin’s relevant stats to as well.

While it wasn’t part of my criteria in voting “Baby Ice” to be the 5th best player in the NBA this season, I would also like to add for sake of this post that he may rank No. 1 in the most fascinating player to watch this season contest. Think about it: we know what Kobe can do. LeBron and Shaq make the Cavs the team to watch, in my opinion, but we know what those dudes can do individually. Same with most of the other top talents in the League. The one guy who could go from “great young player” to All-NBA this season is Mr. Kevin Durant. He won’t simply be handed the accolades, however. Defenders will be coming after him. Coaches will be scheming against him. Media members will keep looking for blemishes.

Can Kevin Durant attack those who wish to stop him and thrill those now creating all his buzz? Having seen a skinny high school kid I worried didn’t have what it took grow into a young man with the ability and confidence to score on anyone in the world, I say yes.

Notes
• Rankings are based solely on projected ’09-10 performance.
• Contributors to this list include: Jake Appleman, Brett Ballantini, Russ Bengtson, Toney Blare, Shannon Booher, Myles Brown, Franklyn Calle, Gregory Dole, Emry DowningHall, Jonathan Evans, Adam Fleischer, Jeff Fox, Sherman Johnson, Aaron Kaplowitz, John Krolik, Holly MacKenzie, Ryne Nelson, Chris O’Leary, Ben Osborne, Alan Paul, Susan Price, Sam Rubenstein, Khalid Salaam, Kye Stephenson, Adam Sweeney, Vincent Thomas, Tzvi Twersky, Justin Walsh, Joey Whelan, Eric Woodyard, and Nima Zarrabi.
• Want more of the SLAMonline Top 50? Check out the archive

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http://myspace.com/brandnew Bryan

Ill just say again I feel like this dude could be the best in the league one day and at worst top 3.
rikson

@360 I guess its because Im a native german speaker, and spider is female in german! @AllenP: I think its due to the different size of the markets. In europe football (soccer) is king of hill! We tend to say: “King soccer rules the world”…. You can have all talent you want, but you still gonna need money to develop such athletic ability! Dont know exactly, but I think its the same in soccer if USA would play any big european country!
http://www2.gsb.columbia.edu/faculty/jstiglitz/ PANAGIOTIS VASILOPOULOS

@jk-light…..: if i have really achieved the last sentence of your final comment then i am honstly flattered. Thanks.
http://slamonline.com/ niQ

Co-sign ken. He literally said EVERYTHING I had to say. I even mentioned the Durantula name thing in the Durant dunk video on Joel Anthony.
http://antwonomous.blogspot.com Antwonomous

“I thought his best-case scenario was to be the next T-Mac…” Sheez, Ben. You say that like it’s a bad thing. Do you remember how good T-Mac was at his peak? He was one of the two best all-around players in the league.
http://www2.gsb.columbia.edu/faculty/jstiglitz/ PANAGIOTIS VASILOPOULOS

@Antwonomous…: E-X-A-C-T-L-Y.
The D Train

@PANAGIOTIS: A very well made point about being able to shoot the basketball, as opposed to driving to the cup and hoping to draw a foul or trying a spectacular shot whilst surrounded by 3 or 4 interior defenders. Your point shows the basic difference between early MJ – late MJ, early Kobe – late Kobe, and right now, Lebron – Kobe. The ability to create a jump shot against one man is what helps a player jump from great the the next level. The amount of energy Kobe expends to break down his defender and create space to get off a jump shot is substantially less than what Lebron takes to drive past his man and into the trees. Jordan’s fall-away his later years, Kobe’s jumper these days…it allows them to maintain their energy which they can then expend on defense. As this applies to Durant: he’s got the ability to shoot the J right now that some guys take years to hone. If Durant wants to be a great defender, he will be because he won’t have to expend all of his energy slashing into the teeth of the defense every time down the floor. The combination of the supreme physical ability these cats have, combined with being able to shoot from over 15 feet make them absolute freaks in the world of competitive basketball.
Orlando Woolridge

I don’t see what age has to do with this list. Its about NEXT YEAR. Just because he will get better with age doesn’t have anything to do with next years output.
The D Train

@Antwonomous: I’m guessing that he’s referring to the fact that T-Mac’s window as one of the “best all-around players in the league” was only a few years. Durant is so young that one could reasonably assume that his window will stay open much longer than McGrady’s did (obviously due to injuries…i loved me some serious T-Mac back in the day, like arguing with cats that he was more complete than Kobe back then)
http://slamonline.com Allenp

Y’all are underestimating Lebron’s jumper.
The fact is, Lebron came into the League with no jumper whatsoever, and has seen it steadily improve.
Hell, look at the improvement in DWade’s jumper since he got to the league.
Neither of them is as good a shooter as Kobe, but both of them have improved.
Greek dude
I don’t know much about soccer, but are most soccer player as tall as basketball players? I always assumed small quick people would be better at soccer, which would seem to be drawing from a different pool than basketball.
Plus, don’t the best soccer players come from the Latin American countries?
Afonso

Durant will be top 5 in a couple of years..he just isn´t the 8 best player today, period..first he needs to lead hes young talented team to at least an .500 record, then we can start talkin..aparently, SLAM does not give a sh33t to team bball/winning ball games..this is not a 5year projection list or hell defenetly be top 5…@greek dude: as mutch as you don´t like Bron because he doest have a perfect stroke and sells a lot of shoes ( wtf dude?!?!!), THE REALITY IS THAT TORCH IS FROM KOBE TO HIM SIMPLY BECAUSE HES A COMPLETE PLAYER, NOT JUST A FREAKISH ATHELETE, like you seem to think..hes not Ray Ray when it comes to shoot but everything else like court vision, handle, passing skills, defense, winning mentality, making ALL HIS TEAMMATES BETTER, witch KD hardly does, but hes young, he proly will…I think Durantula will fight with Bron for the MVP in 5 years but only thing kid has on him is stroke and bball is far from being just that..even at shooting Bron is improving a lot..
Dagomar

This article is pathetic.

Okay, I like Durant. Who doesn’t? But I hate the disrespect people pile on T-Mac when they talk about Durant. T-Mac in Orlando was an insanely good player who could do it all on the offensive side of things.

Durant is a great scorer right now. There are better in the league, but Durant might be a top-five scorer for next year. But what else, exactly, does he do well at this point? Is he a great passer? A great defender? Does he board well? Does he block shots?

Ultimately, is his overall impact on the outcome of games comparable to that of D-Will or Dirk? Of course not. And that’s why he’s not yet a winner.

In my book Lebron is the best player in the game today, but hype like this is exactly why so many people don’t like him right now. The Durant hype is poisoning how people feel about him, and that’s too bad. I think he might become an all-time great someday, but this ranking and this level of hype is premature.
http://www.slamonline.com James the balla

Panagiotis – If your around this season. You will see I fight for my boy Kobe ALOT on this site. We have 100′s of debates lol, they are pretty interesting.
The D Train

@AllenP: I wasn’t disrespecting Lebron’s jumper, but at this point he is still most affective driving to the rim because of his size and crazy physical abilities. His jumper has improved since day one, and I am sure it will continue to do so. His perimeter game is not on par with Kobe right now, but Kobe’s perimeter game in his formative years wasnt on par with where it is now. My point as it relates to Durant is that his perimeter game is already seasoned, so he won’t have to take the physical abuse that Lebron does.
Afonso

@DAGOMAR: YOU HAVE JUST WRITTEN THE MOTHERF#CKIN TRUTH!!!!!!!!CONGRATS, 100% right on the spot!!
http://www.slamonline.com James the balla

Brad – Odom got hurt last night, had to leave the game!! Something with his shin!!
Thype

KD is the one guy I’m not sure about when compiling the ‘tiers’ of players in this list. The boy can score, but the hype is in full effect right now if Slam Online really thinks this kid should be in the top 10 at this point in his development.

As a basketball fan I’m stoked for this year, I’m stoked to see him play to such a level that landing at #8 is justified. But as of right now, nothing you can show me, no stat, no play, nothing, can justify his position on this list. It is way to early to put him between DWill, BRoy, Superman, and Melo. Gotta have a winning season before you belong in the top 10 in my opinion, period.
The D Train

totally off subject: i’m watching the Mavs-Pistons game and can anyone tell me what the F is up with Rip Hamilton’s hair? he has some kind of reverse-soul patch kind of thing on the back of his head…has anyone else seen this?
http://www.slamonline.com James the balla

AllenP – No one, and I mean NO ONE is underestimating Bron’s J lol. His J was ALOT better in high school. It basically sucks now.
http://www2.gsb.columbia.edu/faculty/jstiglitz/ PANAGIOTIS VASILOPOULOS

lot’s of points to respond to, i go shoot some hoops and i hope i mae it up in the evening…
http://www.slamonline.com James the balla

Kobe has always had his shot. He just uses it more now because he has lost a SMALL bit of explosivness/jumping ability. Lebron will never have a jumper like Kobe. Bron would have to break his shot down and rebuild it over and over again until e has that finesse down… but that is not one of his strengths. That’s why Kobe at age 24-26, when he would dunk, it looked like art. He got up high and used style. Bron does one thing, one hand pull back off one foot. He is to big and strong to have that finesse, Kobe and MJ and those guys have. Bron is raw, Kobe is polished. Bron does a layup and makes it look mean, Kobe makes it look sexy. Two totally different players. Bron will never be able to live and die with his jumper like Kobe.
http://www.slamonline.com James the balla

Pan- You knowa lot about ball man, good points on everything.
http://slamonline.com Brad Long

One other thing, if Andrew Bynum played for almost any other team but the Lakers, he’d be getting a ridiculous amount of press right now for how he’s looked so far in training camp and the preseason. He’s avg. 22pts a game so far in 30 mins. a game. But I guess it’s more fun to talk about how Lamar Odom’s wifey looks like a linebacker and how long it’s gonna take Ron to locker room shank Kobe than actually recognize a young up and coming player on the Lakers who could legitimize himself as one of the top 2 centers in the game this year if he stays healthy, which of course is a HUGE if.
Killa Kay

we know slam loves this guy…so putting him at this position, was for the love of him….but I thought this was a no bullshit basketball mag…he may be good, but better than the likes of Bosh and dirk…u cant fool us….
http://slamonline.com Brad Long

James, it’s a contusion, which is basicly a bruise. He’s fine.
http://www.slamonline.com James the balla

Okay good. And man, Bynum looks great. He is actually in shape, unlike when he came back for the playoffs lol.
Very excited man. Artest seems fine with getting his 7 points but playing GREAT D. Sasha looks “spiffy” with his hair doo.
http://slamonline.com/ niQ

I actually LOL’d at work reading Brad Long’s comment about Odom’s wifey.
http://realcavsfans.com Anton

7. Taylor Rain
6. Lil Bow Wow
5. Shaq’s reputation
4. Lolcat
3. That short guy in your school that has to over-compensate for the fact that over 80% of women don’t want to breed with shorties
2. LeBron (regard for human life is optional)
1. Sean Marks
jumpman3224

would love to see Durant follow up his showing in the 8 spot with a cover in the near future.
monkeyball

Panagiotis: I don’t agree with your argument about why the US will always be superior. The point of freaks of nature is that they’re just that – freaks. You could have a freak anywhere. The reason the US produces more freak-of-nature basketball players is that kids are playing ball their entire lives. Poor kids, in particular, have the incentive to develop their freakishness into athletic excellence. It’s exactly the same reason why Brazil will always be a soccer superpower. All 2-year-olds in that country can kick a ball.
http://slamonline.com Brad Long

Sooo…when is that new cover coming out today? I hope it’s a multicover issue.
http://www.kb24.com The Seed

Durant is a good player and I know this is for hi projection for next year, but Durant reminds me of Reggie Bush, how he had a break out seasons, but will fizzle later on. I feel like I am watching it with him and Durant does nothing else for his team, I watch his games and Green has to get a rebound and tip it to himself to get a shot, poor Harden will have to play point to get a shot. Durant wants attention bad and he will get it, but lets let this stick figure work on his game. I believe you can put Kevin Martin in his shoes on that scrub team and he would look better than Durant. The GREEK GUY is right KOBE is the man and it was funny watching Lebron and wade run from the ball and pratically give the ball to Kobe to bail them out. If Kobe was not there at the Championships, this would have happen, Wade or Lebron would have tried to drive to the basket and got a charge call or take a crazy shot with two defenders. Kobe is top 10 and with the championship this year. TOP 5, Lebron is not even above Vince Carter or Dominque Wilkins to me. This is who he should be compared too. Highlights are good, but we need some Rings- Prince. Kobe won’t get all of his propls until he retires and some of yall herbs watch his highlights. KB24 for MVP of the Finals. YES!!!
Juice20

@ james the balla kobe still has the explosiveness the guy just has been playin non stop for like the past 3 seasons includin playoffs and team usa trust me he still jumpin out the buildin..nice spot for kevin durant
NUPE

It will be interesting to look at this list after the season and see if KD really deserves this spot or not. Right now because of his team, age and perceptions of his D, he is not getting full credit for what he brings. It would not surprise me at all if he leads the league in scoring (31 ppg) with 7 rebounds and 4 assist per night. I think in part because of the +/- article in true hoop he’s going to play much better defense this year taking it as a personal challenge. He could easily have top 5 stats and his team not make it to the plalyoffs. He’s not as established as a Dirk but I’d take him over Dirk at this point in time.
http://slamonline.com Allenp

The Seed
Your hate of Lebron knows no bounds….Nique and Vince? Come on, you’re better than that.
http://www.kb24.com The Seed

Allenp, maybe I streched it he is over Vince Carter, but Lebron plays like Nique to me, and I am not trying to be funny. Dunks and drive, can’t really shoot, very athletic for his size and will never win a ring as the best player. Its not hate, facts man.
http://www.shawn-kemps-offspring.blogspot.com/ TADOne

Well done Ben. KD may be too high right now but you make a great argument for his placement. And 21?! I thought KD was 22 already?? Regardless, this kid has pretty much unlimited potential. The only question everyone has is whether he has the drive and the proper work ethic to achieve greatness? He does seem to glide at times on the court and appear as if he isn’t going full tilt. However, the great one’s do make it look easy at times. My League Pass may be stuck on Thunder gaes this season.
http://www.shawn-kemps-offspring.blogspot.com/ TADOne

Is LeBron done playing already? How is what you said facts?
monkeyball

The Seed,

Please go to NBA.com and compare Dominique’s stats in his first 6 season in the League to Lebron’s. Compare their playoff stats. There is no comparison. Those are facts. Your statements are opinions (not that there’s anything wrong with opinion, even when they’re wrong).
http://slamonline.com Ben Osborne

Thanks for all the comments. I actually expected more negativity. Either way, true commentary on this entire list—but even more so when discussing a 21-year-old entering his third season—should be reserved for April. If this guy leads the League in scoring, improves his other stats and helps the Thunder win 40 games and at least be in the Playoff hunt, 8 will seem low. As for those of you waiting for the next ish, I just posted it: http://www.slamonline.com/online/the-magazine/toc/2009/10/slam-133-on-sale-now/
http://Slamonline.com Niya-girl-fresh

Yes, Kevin Durant is a “beast”. Just a few more kinks and additions to his game and dude is going to be a monster in the years to come. People are mad at him for saying “Everyone needs to stop worrying about stats” but he’s right, don’t him for the truth. But he’s a awsome player he showed that last season for sure. Good spot for him in my opinion.
http://www.shawn-kemps-offspring.blogspot.com/ TADOne

I remember All Star weekend last year when TNT decided to do a H-O-R-S-E competition and Durant was in it. While I was watching it with the wife, she kept asking me who the “skinny dude with the big feet and bright orange shoes making all the shots was”. Of course it was Durant and watching him make 30+ foot shots amazed me; not because of the distance on the shots, but because Durant made it seem so effortless.
http://slamonline.com Allenp

Seed
Dude, Lebron has averaged 20, 5, and 5 since he stepped into the NBA. Nique never averaged 5 assists during his entire career. I mean, scoring and rebounds are similar, but it’s obvious that Lebron is pretty much a point forward/scorer while Nique was strictly a scorer for his career. Just watching the two cats play, you can see that their games aren’t really similar at all.
You just really hate Lebron. Really.
http://www.shawn-kemps-offspring.blogspot.com/ TADOne

Allenp, i’m surprised you are even trying to discuss what he said rationally.
Garett

Hey Ben you just re-stated what I wrote yesterday concerning him and Dirk. If. If. If. Hope he does, b/c what’s wrong with having another legit superstar?
Hook me up with a writing gig.
http://www.kb24.com The Seed

Just playing Allenp, Lebron is a talent, just tired of all the media hype, new movie, and now slam even put the Big Stock Trader and LeJamie on the cover. Won’t be buying this, next month we want a Lakers cover, with Artest and Kobe guarding each other with Stephen Jackson in the background, saying his quote I am on the same level as Kobe. Durant is a beast and needs to improve his whole game, but his projection on a weak team garner him this spot. Also was Kevin Martin on this list can’t remember, but Kevin Martin is a beast too and if played anywhere else would be a star. Kevin Martin a real budding star.
http://slamonline.com Allenp

Seed
Watching both cats play, Kevin Durant’s skill set is lightyears ahead of Kevin Martin’s, although I would argue that Martin has a better grasp of the nuances of the game. I really like Martin and think he’s a smart player, but he doesn’t have the handle or pure scoring ability of Durant.
I can understand feeling like Lebron is overhyped, but it hurts your credibility when you say crazy stuff like your earlier statements. I’ve read some comments you’ve made that made a lot of sense, but whenever the issue of Lebron comes up, it’s like you just abandon logic and embrace hate.
http://myspace.com/brandnew Bryan

Allenp, you’re very right about durant I think he is the best pure scorer in the league right now.
JD

No disrespect to Baby Ice, but he’s about 10 or 20 places too high
http://www.shawn-kemps-offspring.blogspot.com/ TADOne

10 or 20 places too high?? JD, have you seen Durant play? And yes, i’m asking seriously.

Top 50: Kevin Durant, no. 8

The definitive ranking of the NBA’s best players.

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