It can be overwhelming. Not many can relate. But for Durant, Westbrook was one of the few that could. Durant said he’d call Westbrook or Kendrick Perkins — a trio that is still in an active three-way group text to this day — and just vent. “I was vulnerable to him,” Durant said. “It was like, yeah, this is someone I can lean on. It showed me a different side of him. Since then, we’ve been really tight.”
More on Durant-Westbrook Relationship
But Durant's selection as Westbrook as his presenter highlighted an eight-year friendship between the two that sprouted through basketball but has extended so far beyond it. “We're like family,” Durant said in an interview with The Oklahoman earlier this week, detailing the evolution of his relationship with Westbrook.
“We don't like each other because he shot more?” Durant asked. “That don't make no sense. And it's really disrespectful to me or to us because you think I'm that selfish of a person? I don't like this guy because he shoots more than me? That's disrespectful to me. Because if I'm a friend, I'm genuine. I'm there. No matter what. Good days, bad days, more shots. I'm a real friend.”
