"Kevin Durant's career arc is littered with what-ifs. What if the Portland Trail Blazers had selected him first in the 2007 draft instead of Greg Oden? What if the Seattle SuperSonics hadn't moved after Durant's rookie season? What if the Oklahoma City Thunder hadn't traded James Harden after making the Finals? What if Durant hadn't signed with the 73-win Golden State Warriors? What if he hadn't ruptured his Achilles in the 2019 Finals?"
"But what if Durant's foot hadn't touched the line? What if he wore properly sized sneakers instead of going one size too big, and what if his turnaround had been worth three points and clinched a dramatic victory for Brooklyn? In reality, Durant, Harden and Irving played only two more games together as teammates. By Feb. 9, 2023, they were no longer on the Brooklyn Nets."
"In this alternate reality, though, which I'm dubbing the Nets Championship Universe, or NCU for short, Durant's shot wins the game, setting off a series of ripple effects that change the direction of not only the Nets but the rest of the NBA. Here are the 17 wildest differences, in chronological order."
Kevin Durant's career trajectory has been shaped by numerous critical decisions and moments. He recently passed Wilt Chamberlain and Dirk Nowitzki to reach sixth on the all-time scoring list, approaching Michael Jordan's fifth-place position. The article explores a hypothetical scenario where Durant's shot in the 2021 playoffs didn't touch the line and counted as a three-pointer, leading Brooklyn to victory. This alternate reality, termed the Nets Championship Universe, would have triggered significant ripple effects throughout the NBA. The scenario begins with the Nets defeating the Phoenix Suns in the 2021 Finals, despite the Suns' strong regular season record and the Nets' regular season dominance over Phoenix.
Read at ESPN.com
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