Kevin Durant talks hurting Thunder fans, anticipates mixed reception

— -- Golden State Warriors All-Star Kevin Durant, just days away from his long-awaited return to Oklahoma City, told SportsCenter this week that he understands his free-agent departure from the Thunder last summer "still hurts" many fans there because "they looked at me as their son."

"I had good relationships with everybody there," Durant told ESPN's Marc Stein in a SportsCenter sit-down that aired early Thursday after the Warriors' 123-92 victory over the Chicago Bulls. "I was good to a lot of people, [and] they were great to me.

"No matter what goes on [Saturday night in OKC] -- cheers, boos -- I know that stuff will be remembered, and it's something that I'm always going to remember. It's a new chapter in my life. I've decided to move on. I know I'm making it sound as simple as that, but to me, that's how I have to approach it. It's just as simple as me moving on and turning a new page in my life. But for them, I know it still hurts for me to move on. They looked at me as their son. I was there since I was 19 years old, and I grew up there. So, like I said, I understand, man. It's all a part of playing sports. It's all a part of being a fan, so I embrace it all."

"I'm looking forward to playing in that atmosphere," Durant continued. "I've always been on -- I'm gonna say the other side of the fence -- where a lot of people have clapped and cheered for me as I walked out onto the court. So to be on the other side, it's going to be different, but it should be fun."

Bulls guard and Chicago native Dwyane Wade was warmly received on South Beach on an emotional night in November when he played his first game as a visitor in Miami. But Durant acknowledged that the reception he is likely to receive at Chesapeake Energy Arena is bound to be "more like LeBron James when he went back to Cleveland" as Wade's new teammate with the Heat in the 2010-11 season.

"That's what makes sports great," Durant told SportsCenter. "That's what makes fans a part of the team, a part of the organization. It's that they're loyal to their team, they're loyal to that logo. Players come and go, coaches, GMs, but that logo stands forever. I know how important that is to those fans there in Oklahoma City. I was there. I was there for the first game [in OKC, after the franchise relocated from Seattle]. [I've] seen how they sold out every night, no matter how good the team was, no matter who was on the floor. So that means a lot to 'em.

"I know what I did wasn't a popular choice, but I can respect how hard they ride for their team, how loyal they are to their team and to that logo."

Durant has had monster games in Golden State's two home wins over Oklahoma City this season, with scoring totals of 39 and 40 points. But he revealed in the SportsCenter conversation that it took him a full quarter in the teams' first meeting Nov. 3 to stop thinking about the gravity of the occasion.

"It was hard to be myself 'cause I was just thinking about teammates, all the hype around the game, all the speculation, different rumors that came out, everybody's trying to figure out why I left, make something out of nothing, basically," Durant said. "I was thinking about all that stuff instead of just realizing, 'Take that whole thing off once you step on the court.'

"In the second game, I was a little bit more comfortable, just knowing it's all about the game of basketball for me. If I go out there and play and produce, all of that noise will start to quiet down. I gotta focus on court, focus on my game, prepare the right way and worry about basketball, instead of all the fake drama that comes with this lifestyle."

Asked specifically why he regards the well-chronicled tension between him and Thunder star guard Russell Westbrook as "fake drama," Durant said: "I realized that early on in the season. I was doing an interview with someone and I used the word 'unselfish' to describe my teammates here [with] the Warriors, and someone asked Russell the question, asked if he heard what I said about being unselfish and he phrased the question as if I was saying that the Thunder and the organization and the team was selfish. And once I heard that, I was like, 'Well, they're trying to get in between this thing and make it bigger than what it is.'

"Obviously, Russell wasn't going to hear that [full] interview I had about me just talking about my teammates I have now and someone in Oklahoma City phrased it to him as if I was calling them selfish. It's that easy. It's that easy for the media to twist something up and for the media to, you know, make a feud between us."

"They can ask me a question, also," Durant added. "For example, when we lost to the Cavs on Christmas, I looked at my phone and someone said Russell screamed, 'Thank you, Kyrie,' running off the court [after Kyrie Irving's game-winning shot]. And I'm thinking, 'No, he didn't say that, 'cause I know Russell.' But you see how easy it is for me to think, 'Wow, that was pretty petty for him to say that.' But I feel like everybody is trying to get in between [us] for their own entertainment, and it's not even that serious.

"At the same time, like I said, I know how fans are. I know how this business is. But at some point, we all realize that you can move on from it and keep living our lives."

As for his new team, Durant said of the huge expectations Golden State faces: "We're in a lose-lose situation almost. We win a game, we're supposed to win. If we lose a game, it's the end of the world. If me and Draymond [Green] have a shouting match, then all eyes are on us, even if we planned that, even if we are trying to fire each other up. We can't be a normal team because of a decision I made. And I know how it is. That's just a part of the business. That's why we get paid the big bucks. And that's why so many people admire us and look up to us, because we gotta go through the criticisms as much as the praise, and I get it. I understand it. It's all a part of it."

Asked whether exposing himself to that level of scrutiny has been a worthy trade for the chance to join the Warriors (44-8), Durant said: "It's worth it. It's worth it to make a decision for yourself and to not be persuaded by a bunch of people who you've probably never met before. I realize what I got myself into, and I can handle it. I'm just always worried about the basketball court. That's the most important thing. None of this stuff would ever matter if I couldn't play the game. So if I prepare and do everything I'm supposed to do, then I can't worry [about] what happens outside the lines."

Saad Yousuf of ESPN Radio in Dallas (103.3 FM) contributed to this report.