Durant convinced himself with "all for victory," but the criticism from experts, the disparagement from public opinion, and the mockery from fans disturbed his heart. He used his burner account online to defend himself, but no matter how he explained it, the decline in his numbers was a fact, and his lack of motivation at the end of the season was also a fact.
The final pressure that drove Durant mad came from Nike.
The man Durant called Uncle, Lynn Memitt, made a call.
"Kevin, do you know why number 44 and number 23 are irreconcilable?"
When Yu Fei and Jordan fell out, Durant was still an innocent boy in the suburbs of D.C., and he believed the story told by the media—young and arrogant Frye refused to accept Michael's leadership, they couldn't coexist, so the Wizards traded Frye.
Back then, Durant didn't try to think from another perspective—what was it really about when a team traded away a promising 20-year-old player to keep a 39-year-old player?