Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant was the direct point of criticism for Dr. J in a recent interview.
The Phoenix Suns have quickly gone from a team notorious to shying away from the luxury tax to some of the biggest spenders in the league.
Since owner Mat Ishbia first took over in February, the Suns have pushed themselves all the way up to No. 3 in the NBA spending ranks, falling behind just the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers.
The Suns certainly hope the cost will be worth it come next June when the NBA Finals are underway, a goal they’ve fallen short on the last three seasons. Names such as Kevin Durant, Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal and Deandre Ayton litter the starting lineup, propelling Phoenix near the top of Western Conference projections for next season.
The Suns have built what many would label a “superteam” – and though fans here in the Valley are quite excited to see what this bunch can do – not everybody is on board with how Phoenix assembled their squad.
Julius Erving recently did an interview with Joy De’Angela and didn’t hold back:
“Where a star player on a team is like, ‘Screw this city and all their support that they’ve given me and I’m going south. I’m going to Florida or I’m going to L.A. or I’m going to Texas or I’m going somewhere else,'” Erving said.
“So these decisions, they’re business decisions, I understand, but they have not helped the game. They have not helped keep the parity within the game when you build these superteams.
“Look how many times Durant has hopped around. […] “The prisoners are running the show and not the warden. It’s where the star player on the team is like, ‘Screw this city and all this support that they’ve given me and I’m going south, I’m going to Florida, I’m going to LA or I’m going to Texas or I’m going somewhere else. They’re business decisions, understand, but they have not helped the game.”
Dame, KD, Super Teams…. Dr. J has thoughts! 😳👀 pic.twitter.com/ZC2FTe8EFs
— Joy De’Angela (@joydeangela) July 28, 2023