Sabtu, 15 September 2012

College career


A 6'9" swingman with a 7'5" wingspan,[11] Durant was one of four freshman starters for the University of Texas basketball team. Durant started in all 35 games of the season, which culminated with a loss in the second round of the NCAA tournament to the University of Southern California. Texas finished third in the conference with a 12–4 record and was the runner-up in the 2007 Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament.[12]
Although he had a slender frame, Durant frequently used it to his advantage by posting up bigger players, while shooting over smaller guards.[13] ESPN analyst Dick Vitale praised Durant as the "most prolific offensive skilled big perimeter" ever and proceeded to compare Durant's game to those of current NBA stars like Kevin Garnett and Dirk Nowitzki.[14] After a 37-point, 23-rebound winning performance against the Texas Tech Red Raiders, head coachBob Knight described Durant as quick, fast and mobile, and being "really good".[15] Texas coach Rick Barnes admitted to rarely calling set plays for Durant, instead relying on Durant himself and on his teammates to find him within the flow of the offense.[16]
Coming into the season, Durant was widely hailed by the media as the Big 12's top freshman and a top candidate to be named Freshman of the Year.[17] He averaged 25.8 points per game and 11.1 rebounds per game during his freshman season with the Texas Longhorns. In Big 12 games he averaged 28.9 points and 12.5 rebounds per game. His college career high for scoring was 37 points, which he achieved on four occasions. Durant had thirty 20-point games his freshman year, including 37 in a losing effort against Kansas for the regular-season Big 12 title.
In March 2007, Durant was named the NABC Division I Player of the Year,[18] and received the Oscar Robertson Trophy[19] and theAdolph F. Rupp Trophy,[20] becoming the first freshman to win each of these awards. On March 30, 2007, he was selected as the Associated Press college player of the year, becoming the first freshman and the first Texas athlete to receive this award since its inception in 1961.[18][21] On April 1, 2007, he became the first freshman to receive the Naismith Award[22] and on April 7, 2007, won theJohn R. Wooden Award.[23] Less than a week after being drafted by the Seattle SuperSonics, the University of Texas announced the retirement of Durant's No.35 jersey. The number will now hang in the rafters at the Frank Erwin Center along with the No.11 of former Longhorn great T. J. Ford.[24] Durant's jersey is now one of nine retired by the University of Texas .

Early life and high school career


Kevin Durant was born Kevin Wayne Durant in Washington, D.C. on September 29, 1988, one of four children of Wanda and Wayne Pratt. Durant has one sister, Brianna, and two brothers, Tony, and Rayvonne. Durant was raised by his parents and his grandmother, Barbara Davis. During his childhood, Durant and Michael Beasley grew up together, and had a close friendship. The two remain friends to this day.
A basketball player from his earliest days, Durant played for a successful Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) youth basketball team, the PG Jaguars, based in Prince George's County, Maryland. The Jaguars won multiple national championships with Durant and fellow future blue chip recruits Michael Beasley and Chris Braswell. Durant wore, and continues to wear, the number 35 jersey in honor of his childhood mentor and Amateur Athletic Union coach, Charles Craig, who was murdered at the age of 35.[6]
Durant later moved on to play AAU basketball with fellow McDonald's All-American Ty Lawson of the Denver Nuggets, for the D.C. Blue Devils. After spending two years at National Christian Academy, and one year at Oak Hill Academy, Durant grew five inches and was 6'7" when he started at Montrose Christian School in Rockville, Maryland for his senior year, during which he grew two more inches.[7] At Montrose, Durant led the team in scoring and steals and was named the Washington Post All Met Basketball Player of the Year. During his time at Montrose, he played in The Les Schwab Invitational, a nationally drawing invitational basketball tournament in Oregon State. Durant also played with current New Orleans Hornets point guard Greivis Vasquez while at Montrose. Vetter described Durant as a hard working player, complete with size, and incredible skills in shooting, ball handling, defense, and even some post up moves.[8] Durant also was named a McDonald's All American and named co-MVP of the 2006 McDonald's All American game along with Chase Budinger. Behind Greg Oden, Durant was widely regarded as the second-best high school prospect.[9][10]

Kevin Durant's profile


Kevin Wayne Durant (born September 29, 1988) is an American professionalbasketball player. Playing the position of small forward, Durant currently plays with the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Standing at 6'9" (235 lbs) and playing the position of small forward, Durant was the consensus 2007 National College Player of the Year and the 2006–2007 Big 12Player of the Year, amongst other awards. After a standout freshman season at theUniversity of Texas,[2] Durant opted to enter the NBA Draft,[3] where he was selected second overall by the Seattle SuperSonics. There he went on to win the NBA Rookie of the Year Award after his debut season. In 2007, Durant signed an endorsement contract with Nike.[4] In the 2009–2010 NBA season, Durant led the NBA in scoring and became the youngest player ever to win the NBA scoring title.[5] He is a 3-time NBA scoring champion, a 3-time member of the All NBA First Team, and a member of the US national teams which won gold in the 2010 World Championship and the2012 London Olympics.