Stephen A: Kevin Durant Didn't Have 'The Greatest Relationship' with Steve Kerr

Much of the talk regarding Kevin Durant's decision to leave the Golden State Warriors this summer has revolved around the idea the Dubs were Stephen Curry's team and that Durant felt underappreciated in the Bay Area. 

But ESPN's Stephen A. Smith said on First Take on Wednesday that there was also tension between Durant and head coach Steve Kerr.

"Kevin Durant did not have the greatest relationship with Steve Kerr," Smith said. "He wasn't too fond of Steve Kerr at all. I don't know the particulars, but I do know that."

"KD was not feeling Steve Kerr. At all," Smith added.

It isn't the first time Durant and Kerr have reportedly had some rocky spots in their relationship, though it hasn't been a prevalent theme. Ethan Strauss of The Athletic wrote the following Sunday:

"However the exit came, Durant left the Warriors because he eventually wasn't all that happy here, despite the rings. If he was, he would have stayed and reaped a bigger paycheck on a better roster. I don't think I'm breaking news here for people who watched the team every day. Beyond the tensions with Kerr and the public spat with Draymond, this had ceased to be a fulfilling situation."

And Steve Popper of Newsday reported on May 18 that "one front-office executive said that Durant has been unhappy with the prodding from Steve Kerr and the feeling that he never can be—no matter how great he performs and how many individual honors he compiles—the centerpiece of a team that holds Steph Curry in the hearts of the franchise."

Even Kerr acknowledged tension in the past, though he called it "stylistic tension, not personal tension" after the 2018 NBA Finals, per ESPN's Zach Lowe, referring to some of the difficulties of incorporating Durant and his ability to dominate in isolation into the Warriors' motion-heavy offense. 

As Lowe wrote: "It surprised almost no one that he left. Some within the team worried during parts of 2017-18 that he would depart after that season."

There will always be tensions between head coaches and star players, always stylistic differences to be navigated. And yet through those tensions, championships were won.

It's hard to say just how much Durant's relationship with Kerr impacted his decision to leave. But it's clear that he didn't have such an amazing relationship with his head coach, his teammates or the organization as a whole that he felt compelled to stay.

With Durant now in Brooklyn, Kerr will need to rebuild the Warriors into championship contenders around Curry, the recently acquired D'Angelo Russell and Klay Thompson when he returns from a torn ACL.