Durant wants the Big Shot
By Travis Heath of HoopsWorld
Last April Kevin Durant matched Carmelo Anthony shot for shot down the stretch and helped the Seattle SuperSonics to a double-overtime victory over the Denver Nuggets. What Durant did late in that game was largely instinctual and it was clear that even as a 19-year-old rookie he had a knack for knocking the down the big shot. Most around the league had a hunch that this might be the start of something big.
As clutch as Durant has been early in his NBA career, he admitted that this wasn’t always the case when he was a younger player.
“Earlier on I’d be nervous, you know, when I was younger or in college I would be nervous,” Durant explained. “But now that I’ve got in the league I’ve seen guys do it and it’s just another shot for me. Every time I get that opportunity I’m going to take advantage of it.”
One team Durant always seems to torture with his late game heroics is the Denver Nuggets, and that continued this season when Durant nailed a shot on February 4th with just a couple of seconds left in Oklahoma City that looked like it was going to bury the Nuggets. This time, though, turnabout was fair play as Carmelo Anthony hit the game-winner from the corner just before time expired.
When asked about why he seems to perform so well late in games against the Nuggets, Durant replied with a smile: “I just play my game. I wouldn’t say it’s something about Denver. I just play my game and go with the flow of my teammates. Some games I’m hitting shots, some games I’m not. Fortunately when I play Denver I’ve been hitting some shots. Hopefully we get a win next time we play.”
So what exactly makes a player good in the clutch, especially a player who hasn’t even played two full seasons in the Association?
“You can’t let the pressure get to you, that’s the main thing — that’s the only thing I would say,” Durant explained. “Just go out there like it’s a regular shot. The worst thing you can do is miss. Just know that you have another game the next day or the day after that. Games come and go in this league and that’s the best thing about it. During those times you can’t be nervous, just go out there and take the shot.”
Thus far in his young NBA career Durant has shown no fear when it comes to taking the big shot. And given the fact he just 20 years of age, fans around the league should expect to see many more late-game theatrics from Durant over the course of the next 10 or 15 years.
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