Warriors GM: 'It wasn't joy' when we won 2018 title with Durant
Bob Myers sees similarities between "The Last Dance" Chicago Bulls and the Golden State Warriors with Kevin Durant.
As the popular documentary continues to offer a behind-the-scenes look at the Bulls' 1997-98 season, the Warriors general manager likened the stresses Chicago faced with the tensions that built within Golden State during Durant's three-year stint.
"The second time with Kevin (in 2018) it felt like, 'Well, we just did what we were supposed to do, and great job,'" Myers told ESPN's Nick Friedell. "It wasn't joy.
"I'm sure a lot of people felt differently. It wasn't anybody's fault. I think there's just a weight to everything. And so I'm sure (the Bulls) felt that weight of everything, weight of relationships."
Durant himself has alluded to friction between him and the rest of the squad, specifically in his final season in 2018-19. After signing with the Brooklyn Nets last summer, he admitted his highly publicized feud with former teammate Draymond Green contributed to his decision to leave.
Most recently, he revealed in a podcast appearance in February that he knew about midway through the year it would be his last in the Bay Area.
"I could feel the separation between the two. You just feel like everybody was just waiting on me to make a decision on free agency. Even from coaches to my teammates to the media - everybody was just like, 'KD, what you going to do?'
"It's like January. And I'm like, 'I'm just trying to hoop. That's all I want to do is play basketball every day.'"
Durant shocked the NBA in 2016 when he announced he was signing with the Warriors, who had just lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in The Finals after surrendering a 3-1 series lead. With Durant now in the mix, the Warriors returned to the next two Finals - both against the Cavaliers - and dropped just one game in the two trips combined.
In his final season, the Warriors attempted to secure a three-peat, much like Jordan's Bulls did twice in the 1990s. However, they fell in six games to the Toronto Raptors after Durant and Klay Thompson tore their Achilles and ACL, respectively.
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