In the history of the NBA, only 2 players have been able to retire their jerseys in 3 teams, and now Durant wants to join them. In a recent interview with The Ringer reporter Logan Murdock, he said that both the Thunder and Warriors should retire his jersey, and if he continues to perform the way he is today in the next 4 or 5 years, the Nets should also have his NBA jersey retired on their schedule.
Only two players in the history of the NBA have ever retired their jerseys in three teams, one is the omnipotent Chamberlain, whose jersey was retired in the Warriors, 76ers and Lakers at the same time; the other is “Pistol” Pete Maravich, whose jersey has been retired by the Hawks and Jazz he played for. Later, after the Hornets moved to New Orleans, also retired Maravich’s jersey, so as to close the distance with the New Orleans fans.
In fact, O’Neal is also eligible to have his jersey retired in 3 teams. He has now retired his jersey in the Lakers and the Heat, and the Magic is slow to move.
There are also 2 people who have the opportunity to retire their jerseys in 3 teams, one is James and the other is Durant. James, who led three different teams to the championship, has the opportunity to retire his jersey with the Cavaliers, Heat and Lakers, while Durant, who has now played for three teams, also has the opportunity to enjoy this honor.
After all, Durant is the first regular season MVP in Thunder (Supersonics) history and led the team to the Finals in 2012. In addition, he was a four-time scoring champion, a seven-time All-Star and a six-time Best XI selection in Russia. In the Warriors, Durant won 2 championships and was elected MVP of the finals 2 times. there is no doubt that he is eligible to retire his jersey in these 2 teams. The company is also eligible to retire its jerseys in the Nets if it can lead the Nets to their first NBA championship in team history.
Interestingly, not long after Durant said, “If the Thunder did not retire my jersey, it would be harmful to the development of basketball,” the Thunder held an official event to recruit a number of old players, during the Thunder general manager Presti said the Thunder welcome the return of old players, no matter how long they have played here will be appreciated.
Of course, the chances of the three young Thunder returning to the Russian city that year are slim, but Presti’s words still give a glimpse of the possibility of reconciliation between them and Durant. After all, Durant had a falling out with the Thunder after leaving in 2016. James also returned to the Cavaliers in 2014, but Durant refused to return to the Thunder.
There is no shortage of precedents for not being able to enjoy jersey retirement due to bad relationships with teams (like Garnett and the Timberwolves), so let’s hope Durant and the Thunder don’t make the same mistake. Can Durant retire his jersey with 3 teams?
