Kevin Durant says playing for OKC is the favorite part of his career: "We were all 22,23 getting thrown into the fire"

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Kevin Durant has played in 16 NBA seasons for four different teams. And while each of his stops has a different story to tell, the two-time NBA champion picked the genesis of his NBA run as the favorite part of his career.

“It had to be at the OKC period because it was like the entry point to all this. It’s like the foundation of everything,” answered Durant.

KD loved playing for the Thunder

Durant was the Seattle SuperSonics’ second overall pick in the 2007 draft. One year later, the Sonics selected Russell Westbrook with the fourth pick and Serge Ibaka at No.24. James Harden, on the other hand, arrived in 2009 as the third pick in the draft.

During Harden’s second season, the Thunder won 50 regular-season games and made the playoffs for the first time. However, the eventual champions, the Los Angeles Lakers, eliminated them in the first round.

The following season, the team had a breakthrough. With “The Beard” winning the Sixth Man of the Year award, the Thunder made it all the way to the 2012 NBA Finals, where they lost to the Miami Heat led by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh.

“We were young, and we was playing against dynasties, competing against Lakers with Kobe when they won back to back, Dallas when they won a championship, Miami with LeBron and D-Wade and all them. That was the start of it all, and I think coming in early, all of us, James, me, Russ, Serge, we was all 22, 23 and getting thrown into the fire like that. That part was the best,” added Durant.

OKC’s first and last Finals appearance

Unfortunately for Durant and the Thunder, that 2012 playoff run turned out to be their last together. Harden was set to hit restricted free agency after the 2012-13 season, and with the two parties unable to agree to a contract extension—OKC refused to offer Harden max money—”The Beard” ended up getting traded to the Houston Rockets.

Although James was gone, OKC still had a formidable trio in KD, Russ, and Ibaka. Durant won MVP honors in the 2013-14 campaign, but the Thunder could not get past the Western Conference Finals that season. They would make another run to the West Finals in 2016, but after losing to the Warriors in seven games, Durant did the unthinkable and left OKC for Golden State.

With Westbrook as the sole superstar on the team, the Thunder’s championship window officially closed. Russ won the MVP award in 2017, but the team was far from the force it was when they had KD, Westbrook, Harden, and Ibaka.