Sports
Suns’ Kevin Durant, tired of leadership criticism, calls ESPN star ‘a clown to me’
PHOENIX — Mike Budenholzer was recently asked about Kevin Durant’s leadership over the past month. The first-year Phoenix Suns coach didn’t hold back. He said Durant has been “off the charts.” He praised Durant’s actions. He praised his voice. And he said the veteran forward has set the tone for the Phoenix organization.
After Saturday night’s 103-97 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, which increased the Suns’ record to 5-1, Durant was asked for his reaction to Budenholzer’s comments.
First, Durant wanted to know something: “Why’d you ask him that?” he said.
Durant’s leadership is not a new NBA topic, but during an Oct. 24 episode of “First Take,” ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith used it as a reason to argue against the Suns as a serious contender. The popular basketball analyst praised Durant’s greatness and commitment, but he questioned the 14-time All-Star’s leadership and ability to inspire teammates.
After “First Take” posted the segment on social media, Durant responded on X, telling Smith that he respectfully disagreed and that he would argue “passionately” that his intangibles have always been on par with his talent.
In the Phoenix locker room Saturday night, after several teammates had already left Footprint Center, Durant spoke more forcefully.
“Yeah, Stephen A., I don’t understand how people even listen to Stephen A.,” he told The Athletic. “I’ve been in the league for 18 years. I’ve never seen Stephen A. at a practice, or a film session, or a shoot-around. I’ve never seen him anywhere but on TV talking s— about players. … He’s a clown to me. He’s always been a clown. You can write that, too.”
I would disagree stephen. I would argue, passionately, that my intangibles have always been on par with my talent
— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) October 24, 2024
Smith, who has worked for more than three decades as an NBA and general sports columnist and multimedia personality, is not the first to question Durant’s leadership. Perhaps the sport’s most influential voice, Charles Barkley called Durant a “follower” during last season’s NBA All-Star weekend. If it’s not a sensitive topic for Durant, it’s an irritating one.
Durant doesn’t claim to be a perfect basketball player — “Of course, I got things I need to work on,” he said — but he said when people try to find something to criticize about his game, they often settle on leadership, “stuff that’s, like, so vague and subjective.”
For much of his nine seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder, he was widely considered a leader of a rising team. At the end of each season, The Oklahoman published report cards on each player. Durant often got As in efficiency, defensive rebounding — and leadership. A headline about him in the Charlotte Observer once read: “Thunder star provides leadership to a team in transition but with expectations.”
Since leaving Oklahoma City in 2016, Durant has played for Golden State, where he won two titles, Brooklyn and Phoenix. And often, even while climbing to eighth on the NBA’s career scoring list, his leadership skills come up, especially when his teams fail to reach expectations.
In a recent phone interview, former Suns assistant coach Kevin Young said leadership comes in different forms. During his four seasons with the Suns, point guard Chris Paul led more with his voice, while Durant did so with his work habits. Young said there’s no secret sauce for Durant. He shows up every day and works hard. Then he shows up the next day and does the same thing. And the next day.
“But make no mistake about it, Kev speaks up in film sessions,” said Young, now the head coach at BYU. “Kev wants to win. He’s probably more vocal behind the scenes than I think people realize. At least he was in my experience.”
With Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, the Suns last season were expected to contend. Instead, they won 49 games and were swept in the postseason’s first round. The Athletic reported after the season that Durant was not always happy with how he was used in the offense, but that he also may not have adamantly voiced those concerns with the coaching staff. In May, owner Mat Ishbia and the front office fired then-coach Frank Vogel and later hired Budenholzer, setting the organization on a new path.
Durant, of course, remained a centerpiece.
“We’re kind of through the camp phase of life, but how hard he went in camp, the drills and the different things,” Budenholzer said last week of Durant. “He set the tone for us as an organization, for us as a team. And it’s not just been by leadership. It’s been his voice. He’s put his arms around young players. He’s put his arm around veterans. He’s put his arm around me. It’s something that’s important to us. I don’t know if he likes it or knows it, but I’m going to keep pushing him to be his best, in all ways, including as a leader.”
Asked if he’s tried to be more vocal this season, Durant, 36, said he’s been the “same dude.”
“Obviously, you grow as a human being, you get more comfortable with yourself, you get more comfortable talking to crowds as you experience more and more in the league,” he said in the locker room. “… I’ve always been on this trajectory, of diving deep into the game, not just for myself but for the whole team. To say that I’m just sitting here, you paint this picture of me coming into the locker room, not talking to my teammates, quiet, not talking to my coaches. Like, come on, man. It’s just ridiculous.”
Conversations with teammates about Durant’s leadership almost always start with his work ethic. It’s not so much the time that Durant puts in as the intensity and focus with which he attacks each session. Booker said the pace of Durant’s workouts is second to none.
“It’s contagious,” point guard Tyus Jones said. “He’s an all-time great. You see him showing up, going 110 percent each and every day, working on his craft. Even in Year 18, he’s still looking for ways to get better. He’s still pushing himself to get better. How do you not do the same?”
“He’s an all-time great. … Even in Year 18, he’s still looking for ways to get better,” teammate Tyus Jones says of Kevin Durant. “How do you not do the same?” (Harry How / Getty Images)
Reserve point guard Monte Morris played five seasons in Denver with star big man Nikola Jokić. He said Jokić would encourage him to make plays, and he said Durant has had a similar message here. Beal said Durant’s encouragement has helped rookie Ryan Dunn get off to such a solid start.
“A lot of times you’re in your mindset, you’re in ‘kill mode,’ and you want everybody else to follow suit,” Beal said. “But that encouragement that he gives and that confidence he gives Ryan, that goes a long way. That’s a reason why guys step up and play the way they do, when you have guys like (Durant) backing you up.”
“Everybody has their ways of getting into other people,” forward Josh Okogie said. “Some people are ‘rah-rah’ guys. We don’t have a lot of ‘rah-rah’ guys in here. We have guys who are all about results. You either do it or you don’t, and Kevin is a good guy who makes sure everybody is held accountable.”
For Durant, it’s a tired topic, and one that’s not likely to go away. But he’s happy about one thing.
“I’m glad my coaches and teammates got my back,” he said.
GO DEEPER
The Suns are off to a good start, and it goes beyond their offensive stars
(Top photo of Kevin Durant after Saturday’s win over the Trail Blazers: Kate Frese / NBAE via Getty Images)
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Napoleon Solo took home the 2026 Preakness Stakes on Saturday, the 151st running of the race.
The favorite in Taj Mahal, the 1 horse, was in the lead from the start until the final turn until Napoleon Solo made his move on the outside and took the lead at the top of the stretch. As Taj Mahal fell off, Iron Honor, the 9 horse, snuck up, but the effort ultimately was not enough.
Napoleon Solo opened at 8-1 and closed at 7-1. Iron Honor, at 8-1, finished second, with Chip Honcho fishing third after closing at 11-1. Ocelli, one of just three horses to run both the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago and Saturday’s Preakness, finished fourth at 8-1.
A Preakness branded starting gate is seen on track prior to the 151st Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park on May 16, 2026 in Laurel, Maryland. For the first and only time, Laurel Park is hosting the Preakness Stakes which is the second race of the Triple Crown jewel due to the traditional home of the race of the Pimlico Race Course undergoing complete renovations. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
A $1 exacta paid out $53.60, while a $1 trifecta brought in $597.10. But someone out there is very lucky, as a $1 superhighfive – picking the top-five finishers in order – paid out $12,015.70.
Even moreso, a 20-cent Pick 6 – picking the winners of the six consecutive races, with the final being the Preakness, paid out $33,842.34.
The race was run without the Kentucky Derby winner for the second year in a row. After Sovereignty did not run the Preakness last year – and wound up winning the Belmont Stakes – the training team of Golden Tempo opted to skip the Maryland race.
From 1960 to 2018, only three Derby winners did not run in the Preakness. Three Derby winners have skipped the Preakness in the last five years, and for the sixth time in eight years, for various reasons, the Triple Crown had already been impossible to accomplish by the time the Preakness even rolled around.
“I understand that fans of the sport or fans of the Triple Crown are disappointed, but the horse is not a machine,” Golden Tempo’s trainer, Cherie DeVaux, told Fox News Digital earlier this week.
Paco Lopez, right, atop Napoleon Solo, edges out Iron Honor, ridden by Flavien Prat, to win the 151st running of the Preakness Stakes horse race, Friday, May 15, 2026, at Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
CHERIE DEVAUX REFLECTS ON MAKING KENTUCKY DERBY HISTORY AS FIRST FEMALE TRAINER TO WIN THE RACE
Only three horses from two weeks ago – Ocelli, Robusta, and Incredibolt, were back at the Preakness. Corona de Oro, the 11 horse on Saturday, was scratched well ahead of the Derby, and Great White, who reared up and fell on his back after becoming startled shortly before entering the Derby gate, took the 13 post on Saturday.
The Preakness went off roughly 24 hours after a horse died following the completion of his very first race.
Hit Zero, trained by Brittany Russell, came into the race as the favorite. However, he finished last in the race, which was won by another one of Russell’s horses, Bold Fact — and upon crossing the finish line, Hit Zero reportedly began coughing, dropped to his knees, then put his head down and died.
The Preakness took place at Laurel Park as Pimlico undergoes renovations. It was the first time ever that Pimlico did not host the race, moving roughly 20 miles south.
Paco Lopez, atop Napoleon Solo, wins the 151st running of the Preakness Stakes horse race, Friday, May 15, 2026, at Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
The Belmont Stakes, the final Triple Crown race, will take place on June 6. The race will return to Saratoga for a third year in a row as Belmont Park continues to be renovated.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
HIGH SCHOOL BOYS VOLLEYBALL
CITY SECTION FINALS
FRIDAY
At Birmingham
DIVISION I
#1 Taft d. #3 Cleveland, 25-23, 25-14, 25-21
DIVISION IV
#7 Maywood CES d. #4 Math & Science College Prep, 25-17, 25-17, 25-23
At Venice
DIVISION II
#4 Marquez d. #6 Narbonne, 23-25, 25-19, 29-27, 25-16
DIVISION III
#13 Birmingham d. #2 Legacy, 25-20, 17-25, 31-33, 25-21, 15-10
SATURDAY
At Birmingham
OPEN DIVISION
#3 Chatsworth d. #1 Granada Hills, 24-26, 25-21, 25-14, 25-18
DIVISION V
314 Franklin d. #13 Rancho Dominguez, 25-18, 25-19, 25-16
SOUTHERN SECTION FINALS
THURSDAY
At Home Sites
DIVISION 9
Vasquez d. Tarbut V’ Torah, 25-19, 22-25, 25-21, 19-25, 15-10
FRIDAY
At Cerritos College
DIVISION 1
#1 Mira Costa d. #3 Loyola, 25-21, 25-22, 25-22
DIVISION 4
Sunny Hills d. Royal, 24-26, 25-22, 27-25, 25-23
At Home Sites
DIVISION 5
Bishop Diego d. St. Anthony, 25-19, 25-19, 23-25, 25-23
DIVISION 8
Temescal Canyon d. West Valley, 24-26, 25-16, 25-19, 25-23
SATURDAY
At Cerritos College
DIVISION 2
Orange Lutheran d. Edison, 3-1
DIVISION 3
Windward d. St, John Bosco, 24-26, 25–21, 25-22, 25-20
DIVISION 6
Culver City d. Garden Grove, 27-25, 25-20, 19-25, 21-25, 15-9
Sports
It’s Game 7, and we have a bet locked in as the Cavaliers and legacies are on the line against the Pistons
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The NBA takes a lot of flak for having meaningless games, and I can definitely understand it, watching on a random Wednesday in January. However, the playoffs have delivered over and over to viewers and rewarded us for putting up with garbage regular-season games.
This will be the fourth Game 7 of the playoffs. Three series have been sweeps, and the other three have been six games. That shows competitive hoops. Now, how do we bet this Game 7 in the Eastern Conference?
The Cleveland Cavaliers blew it. After not winning a road game all postseason, they took Game 5 in surprising fashion. It looked like they were going to win in six games. After all, they hadn’t lost a game at home in the postseason.
Instead, Detroit came out and blitzed the Cavs, never giving them a chance to get their footing. They lost in an ugly fashion and now have to figure out a way to win a game on the road.
Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden drives to the basket against the Detroit Pistons during the second half of Game 5 in the second-round NBA playoffs in Detroit on May 13, 2026. (Duane Burleson/AP)
It isn’t just the Cavs’ fate that rests in this game. It is also the legacy of James Harden and, to a lesser extent, Donovan Mitchell.
We know that Mitchell is a very good player, but he isn’t regarded as one of the best players ever. Harden is. Unfortunately, Harden has struggled in Game 7s. He’s averaged 19.1 points, 7.3 assists and 5.8 rebounds. That’s not terrible, but looking at his shooting percentages, he is at 35.3% and 22.2% in those games. He actually is 4-4 overall in the games, but in his past three, he has scored a combined 34 points over 113 minutes.
The Detroit Pistons seem to like playing with their backs against the wall. They are a gritty team, so I suppose it makes sense.
Detroit Pistons’ Jalen Duren reacts after allowing a pass to go out of bounds in the second half of Game 4 of the second-round NBA playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Cleveland on May 11, 2026. (Sue Ogrocki/AP)
Cade Cunningham continues to deliver for the team, and he finally got some help in Game 6 from Jalen Duren. This was never going to be an easy series for Duren, but it feels like he is taking more time to mature than others. He definitely improved this year, but the consistency they need from him just isn’t there yet.
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Now as the team goes home they will need Duren to be a beast on the glass. If he can keep the Pistons in the rebounding battle, they should win this game with ease. They won Game 6 by just three rebounds, but that takes away a big dimension of what Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley do for the Cavs. It isn’t everything, though, as the Pistons won the rebounding battle in both losses in Cleveland.
I don’t see this being a runaway game for the Pistons. Mitchell and Cunningham likely will cancel each other out with scoring. Harden needs to establish himself as the third-best player on the floor. I haven’t seen him do that in the postseason, yet.
Cleveland Cavaliers All-Stars Donovan Mitchell and James Harden talk during Game 2 in the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs vs. the Toronto Raptors at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Ohio. (David Dermer/Imagn Images)
This is the second Game 7 of the playoffs for both of the clubs, so it isn’t like either will be caught off guard about what this entails.
If I look at it objectively, I think the Cavs have the better players. However, the Pistons have looked significantly better this season, and definitely in the playoffs overall. Both are prone to issues and slipping. The Cavs shouldn’t be as they are a veteran team.
This game has to be won by Cleveland, though. There is too much riding on the franchise and legacies of guys for them to not prepare properly for it. Maybe that’s weak analysis, but I’m taking the Cavs with the points and I do think they win outright. I expect a monster game from Mitchell, and Harden should get 10+ assists.
Either way, whoever wins will lose to the New York Knicks.
For more sports betting information and plays, follow David on X/Twitter: @futureprez2024
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