Double Standards in the NBA
Durant seems to avoid criticism even when his season ends the same way other, more criticized players seasons end. (Getty Images)
With the Brooklyn Nets being eliminated this Saturday by the Milwaukee Bucks, we will not get the chance to see this super team fully healthy until next season competing for the NBA championship. Kevin Durant played phenomenally in the playoffs this year. He set the record for most points scored in a game seven, including an amazing shot that sent the game into overtime. However, in overtime, he went 0-6 including an airball that could have tied it up.
Fans have come to the defense of Durant’s performance due to not getting the support needed to overcome the Bucks. While this is an accurate statement, someone like LeBron James would not get that type of support in the media if he was in a similar situation. Skip Bayless for example praised Durant’s performance in game seven but has infamously downplayed any great performance James has ever had that did not result in a win.
Had Giannis not led his team to victory over the Nets, the target on his back for criticism would be huge, unlike Durant. (Jeff Hanisch/USA TODAY Sports)
This type of double standard is why a lot of fans have issues with the sports analysts nowadays. A lot of NBA players are not judged by the same standards that other players are held to. As great as Durant has been, he has escaped a lot of criticism that players that are the number one option on their team have had thrown their way. Early in his career, the blame used to be shifted to Russell Westbrook and coaching, while this season’s loss, the excuse was injuries. Had the Bucks lost this series, almost all the blame would have been shifted to their star, Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Another player that is a victim of these double standards is Westbrook himself. Fans and media alike have stated at one point or another over the past few years that Westbrook stat-pads his numbers. Yet other players get praised for putting up these same or similar numbers and they never are called stat padders. This double standard has been following Westbrook around since his days in Oklahoma City where he put up astronomical numbers leading to him winning the MVP. Some people felt these were inflated due to teammates allowing Westbrook to grab rebounds over them and Westbrook scoring loads of points in blowout games.
Westbrook repeatedly gets thrown under the bus due to his gaudy stats and how it is perceived he gets them. (Brad Mills/USA TODAY Sports)
The reason it continues to follow him can be surmised when one looks at Westbrook’s stat line by year. He continues to fill the boxscore with video game-like numbers year after year, leading people to assume he stat-pads. While this certainly could be a case of stat padding, it might also just be confusion around Westbrook’s effort on the basketball court.
The most obvious examples of this exist when players are compared to LeBron James. For the past few years, there has always been some player that is said to be on the same level or better than James. Players such as Kawhi Leonard, Durant, Steph Curry and James Harden are mentioned as being on the level of or better than James. Yet those players have not had the expectations placed on them that James has. It makes little sense that those players are being crowned, yet they are not expected nor have accomplished what James has achieved.
There are countless other examples, but a big issue within the NBA community is players being judged by different standards. The community needs to start being fair with their critiques and not switching around logic or expectations to suit a player that you might be a fan of.
