Golden State Warriors: 5 goals for Kevin Durant in 2017-18

5. Tune out the noise

It does not really matter whether or not people see Durant as petty. It doesn’t matter if they are right in their assessment, either. Durant is petty, Curry is cocky, LeBron James is passive-aggressive and Kyrie Irving is delusional. These are fun opinions for fans to form about celebrities based on their public personas, nothing more.

At the same time, Durant’s transparency on the topic is accurate: He was being a total [expletive] idiot.

It wasn’t dumb because he “should” be above it, or because he criticized his former teammates and coach. People are entitled to think he is thin-skinned, or a jerk, or whatever. He is also entitled to do whatever he wants on the internet or say whatever he wants about his former teammates.

What made it dumb is that it counteracted the narrative he had built in last year’s Finals. The one where he was pushing LeBron. All summer, people were talking about Durant’s dominance, until the conversation shifted to his immaturity.

It will swing right back, as long as he makes this Twitter gaffe his last.