Warriors on the Court: NBA’s Men of God

By Gary Nguyen --
11 Jul 2016 --

Keith Durant is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Kevin Durant joins fellow believers Curry and Green on a highly spiritual team: Golden State Warriors.

Even the most casual of sports fans knows that NBA superstar Kevin Durant left the Oklahoma City Thunder, the only team he’s ever played for, and a team that was one game away from playing in the NBA finals this year. On July 7, Durant signed on with the Golden State Warriors.

Yes, the Warriors, the team that kept Durant and the Thunder out of the finals this year.

Warriors on the Court: NBA’s Men of God[/tweetthis]

Like anything else these days, Durant’s move out west was polarizing. Some say, in this day and age, players need to group together with other stars to win a championship, and support Durant’s decision. Others, however, are accusing Durant of the “can’t beat them, join them” syndrome.

The Warriors roster already contains superstars Steph Curry and Draymond Green, both of whom identify strongly as Christians, reports Louis Bolling for the Huffington Post.

So maybe Durant’s move wasn’t motivated by championships or basketball at all. Maybe his move had to do with his relationships with Curry and Green. And with God.

Back in 2010, during the FIBA World Championships, Durant, Curry, Green and Andre Iguodala (of course, another Golden State Warrior), visited the chapel regularly.

Excited to watch two strong Christian men pair up as teammates in Golden State! Two #humble #MVPs in #KevinDurant & #StephenCurry
— Andrew Hammond (@AndrewHammond22) July 4, 2016

Marc Jackson, former coach of the Warriors, was very open about his Christian faith, bringing it into the locker room on a regular basis. Current coach Steve Kerr has continued the tradition, not necessarily from the lead, but by supporting all players’ rights to express themselves.

Often times professional athletes are seen as greedy and out of touch with reality. They are also accused of no caring about winning for the fans, just fattening their wallets.

On the surface, Kevin Durant seems to have decided to pursue his dream of winning an NBA championship by moving to a team that won it two years ago, and lost in seven games to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers this season.

Perhaps everybody has forgotten that the mega-rich superstars are also human beings. Like fellow NBA superstar Dwayne Wade (who has jumped from the Miami Heat to the Chicago Bulls in recent days) said shortly after Durant’s decision, “Relationships are important, people!”

Players’ relationships with other players. And, in some cases, their relationships with God.