NBA star Kevin Durant vented to Denver Nuggets fans who praised Nikola Jokic and his Serbia following their Paris Olympics semifinal thriller against Team USA.
The Americans came back from a 17-point deficit with a heroic fourth-quarter effort to beat the European nation 95-91 in a battle for a spot in the gold medal game.
Jokic, 29, showcased his talent against the USA on Thursday, finishing with 17 points while dishing out 11 assists and grabbing five rebounds.
After the match, the three-time NBA MVP received well-deserved applause for making Team USA sweat with their Serbian teammates.
A nugget podcaster said the “whole country should be proud” to come face to face with the Americans as he posted a photo of the 6-foot-7 center dunking the ball during the game.
The podcaster noted that Serbia’s effort was against a heavy favorite and “the most talented team in the history of the planet” with an Olympic medal on the line.
The remark apparently angered Durant, 35, who responded: “Where are you from??”
Other Nuggets fans argued that there was nothing wrong with rooting for Jokic with one labeling the Serbian center as “clearly the best player in the world”.
Durant then took it out on the Denver faithful.
“For all you Nuggets fans, nobody gives a shit who you believe is the best player in the league,” the Phoenix Suns forward said. he wrote.
“The players have great respect for Jok, we don’t adore him like the rest of you, but most are in awe of his brilliance.
“Trolling you idiots for rooting against us is part of the game. Deal with it.”
Durant received a lot of criticism for his outburst with Nuggets fans insisting that emphasizing Jokic’s greatness was not an act of betrayal of America.
Others noted that idolizing a player has been part of NBA culture for decades, but apparently became a problem when international players became the league’s stars.
But Durant remained furious.
“Let’s talk about the fan culture that has been created recently,” he posted.
Highest contracts in NBA history
- Jayson TatumCeltics – 5 years, $314 million
- Jaylen BrownCeltics – 5 years, $285.4 million
- Nikola JokicNuggets – 5 years, $276.1 million
- Bradley BealSuns – 5 years, $251 million (signed with Washington)
- Antonio EduardoTimberwolves – 5 years, US$244.6 million
Tyrese HaliburtonPacers – 5 years, $244.6 million
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“Many huge egos who believe they are the reason a sport advances.
“A LOT of idol worship, a lot of hate and division based on wins and losses.
“Very disrespectful to the work done by these incredible athletes, especially from people who don’t know what it takes to be good at anything other than speaking.”
Durant implied that social media encouraged NBA fans to “use players to promote tacky agendas” while enjoying anonymity online.
“This is a family of brotherhood that you are not part of,” the two-time NBA champion continued.
“It’s a problem now because social media has you clowns walking around with your chests out, like you want to say something.
“NOT YOU!!! YOUR TAKES DON’T MATTER.”
Team USA will face France for gold on Saturday.
Durant made history during the Paris Games, surpassing WNBA legend Lisa Leslie to become USA Basketball’s all-time leading scorer at the Olympics.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story