Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett believes that Kevin Durant "broke the league" when he signed with the Golden State Warriors in the summer of 2016. Furthermore, Garrett says he's the type of guy who is "too competitive to try and ride on somebody's coattails" in order to rack up wins, like Durant.
During an appearance on 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland, following the Warriors' four-game sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, Garrett spoke about KD's decision.
"If I were him, I would've never made a move like that in the first place," he said, per 92.3 The Fan. "Me, I'm too competitive to try and ride on somebody's coattails to get a W. But for him, you might as well stay at the spot you're at now. There's no point in leaving since you've already taken that moniker where he's been called the snake and cupcake and all that. You might as well stay and just keep on winning."
“With KD, you just stick him in and he scores," Garrett said, per 92.3 The Fan. "You already knew what they had. They were 73-9 before and you put the second-best player in the world on an already all-time great team and of course you’re going to have success, pretty easy success. Anyone can have an off night and they can still find a way to win.”
In comparing Durant's decision with the way LeBron James teamed up with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami, Garrett says, “You hopped onto a 73-9 team and he took the easy way out in my mind,” Garrett said. “It’s different when LeBron left. He went to [Miami to join] Wade and Bosh but it wasn’t something that was already guaranteed, something you already knew was going to have immediate success. [James] had to gel and work things into place."