Kevin Durant's Ex-Teammate Enes Kanter Trolls Him Following Russell Westbrook's MVP Win

Enes Kanter stuck up for Russell Westbrook after his MVP win, mocking Kevin Durant's famous MVP speech in the process.

June 27, 2017

enes kanter in a thunder jersey — Image via USA Today Sports/Troy Taormina
USA Today Sports

Kevin Durant's departure from Oklahoma City left a lot of people upset, even if they had no attachment to the Thunder themselves. The shift in competitive balance caused by Durant's move to Golden State made the outcome of the 2016-17 NBA season feel inevitable and caused fans to lash out at KD over the move. Now imagine being his teammate in OKC and watching an MVP-caliber player leave for a team you just lost a seven-game series to.

Russell Westbrook's cold war with Durant persisted throughout the season, and it's pretty clear it rubbed off on the rest of the Thunder. After Westbrook took home the MVP trophy at the inaugural NBA Awards on Monday night, he posed for a fairly normal picture with teammate Enes Kanter. Kanter decided to share it with a caption that recalled another former Thunder MVP.

The obvious allusion to Durant's famous MVP shout out to his mother did not go unnoticed. Warriors fans and Warriors haters alike swarmed on the Tweet, weighing in with their reactions to Kanter's shade.

There's probably some truth to the argument from both sides here. If Kanter spent half as much effort on his defense as he did on his tweets, the Thunder might be able to use him properly in a playoff series. But there's no doubt he was happy for his buddy Westbrook, and what better way to earn a soft spot in Russ' heart than by throwing shade at the player who Westbrook is fighting a cold war against?

This isn't quite as good as posting a platter of cupcakes on Instagram, but it's another excellent chapter in the ongoing feud between Durant and his old team. Just don't remind anyone on the Thunder that the Warriors are the favorites to win at least a couple more titles in a row.