A little healthy competition is good for the soul, or so they say, but Kevin Durant admits that he may have had a one-sided beef. The sports world is always introducing new figures and players who have their eyes on the prize of being the best. In the NBA, every rookie has a top-tier player that they've admired, and if they're lucky, they would receivee the opportunity to go toe-to-toe with their idols in the paint. During a recent episode of The ETCs with Kevin Durant podcast, the sports icon revealed that he had a previous beef with the late Kobe Bryant—although it seems Bryant didn't have a clue.
Durant spoke about young players coming into the league with a goal of surpassing the best of the best, and for Durant, Bryant was a person to beat. “The Magics, the Birds, the Jordans, they created that brotherhood amongst the league,” said Durant. There is a balance at looking at fellow players as both brothers and competition. “I felt like I had a beef with Kobe Bryant but he didn’t even know I had this beef — as you get older you look at these guys as just sharpening you and making you better."
"When Bron goes to score 50 points or James Harden has 60 points, I’m looking at, how can I top it just to be better... How can I maintain that level I was on, too. It’s a healthy competition.” Listen to the most recent episode of The ETCs with Kevin Durant below.