NBA TIP-OFF 2015-2016 SEASON - ALLOW ME TO REINTRODUCE MYSELF - KEVIN DURANT - ALL-MET ELITE

NBA TIP-OFF

 2015-2016 
SEASON

 ALLOW ME TO REINTRODUCE

 MYSELF

KEVIN DURANT 

 ALL-MET ELITE

MONTROSE CHRISTIAN HS.
ROCKVILLE MD.

 

COURTESY OF
TULSAWORLD.COM

Kevin Durant is one of the top players in the NBA, having won the league's 2013-14 Most Valuable Player award and won four scoring titles in just eight seasons.
Durant grew up in Washington, DC with his mother and grandmother raising he, his sister and two brothers after his father deserted the family when Kevin was an infant.
Durant honed his basketball skills playing in AAU leagues in Maryland. As a freshman and sophomore, Kevin played basketball at National Christian Academy before playing one season at Oak Hill Academy.

He transfered to Montrose Christian School for his senior season, where he averaged 23 points and 11 rebounds. In 2006, he was the McDonald's All-American Game Most Valuable Player after scoring 25 points to lead the West team to a 112-94 win.
He picked the University of Texas over other offers from Connecticut, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Louisville and North Carolina.

Durant would play only one season in Austin, being named a consensus First-Team All-American, the Big 12 Player of the Year in 2007 as well as the US Basketball Writers Association National Freshman of the Year and National College Player of the Year, averaging 25.8 points and 11.1 rebounds per game for the Longhorns, who would retire his #35 jersey.
The Seattle Supersonics selected Durant with the second overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft and he would be recognized as the league's top rookie after averaging 20.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1 steal per game for the Sonics, making him only one of three players to average at least 20 points per game as a teenager.

In 2008, the Sonics moved to Oklahoma City and Durant would combine with teammates Russell Westbrook, James Harden and Serge Ibaka to form one of the NBA's most powerful teams.
The first season in Oklahoma City wasn't as successful. The team started the season 1-16 and fired head coach P.J. Carlesimo. Durant averaged 25.3 points per game to finish sixth in the scoring race.
The 2009-10 season saw the first of six consecutive seasons being named to the NBA All-Star team and the first of three consecutive and four overall scoring titles. Durant averaged 30.1 points per game in helping the Thunder make their first playoff appearance.

Oklahoma City continued its improvement in 2010-11, advancing to the Western Conference Finals, falling to eventual champion Dallas in five games. Durant averaged 27.7 points per game.
In 2011-12, Durant helped lead Oklahoma City to the NBA Finals, again leading the league in scoring at 28 points per game. In the Western Conference Finals against the San Antonio Spurs, OKC trailed two games to one before Durant helped fuel a comeback with 36 points, six rebounds and eight assists in a Game 4 victory and 34 points and 14 rebounds in the clinching Game 6 win.
The Finals would go to the Miami Heat, but Durant would average 30.6 points per game, including 36 in Game 1, which would be the Thunder's lone victory.

Injuries derailed Oklahoma City's playoff run in 2012-13 as Russell Westbrook suffered a knee injury in the second game of the first round against the Houston Rockets. Durant would help the Thunder advance to the second round, but Memphis eliminated them in five games.

The 2013-14 season would see Kevin Durant climb to the top of the NBA heap. Over a 12-game span, Durant averaged 35.9 points per game and eclipsed the 30-point mark in each of the games -- including a career best 54 against Golden State. He finished the season with a 32 points per game average for his fourth scoring title and helped OKC advance to the Western Conference Finals, falling to eventual champion San Antonio.

Prior to the 2014-15 season, Durant suffered a fracture in his right foot and missed the first 17 games of the regular season. Injuries to his ankle and toe also forced him to miss games and a surgery to address pain in his surgically repaired foot limited his season to just 27 games.
Durant will become a free agent following the 2015-16 season and is expected to be the most sought after player in free agency.