Donning their sunset-colored alternates, a unique jersey where the player’s last name rests below their number, the Oklahoma City Thunder traveled up north for a Sunday showdown against the Boston Celtics.
On top of the fact that they were repping their alternative uni, which was a big draw to a sports-fashion lover like myself, seeing the Thunder play live was extra special because of two names: Durant and Westbrook. As hoop fans know, 2016 marked the last time these two shoe-in Hall of Famers would suit up on the same team, so in hindsight, I’m very grateful to have witnessed them in collaboration at this stage in their respective NBA journeys.
Though I was born and raised in MA, for whatever reason, I never rocked with the Celtics. I can’t pinpoint as to why that it is, but it wasn’t personal, and had nothing to do with their success rate. Just something about the organization that rubbed me the wrong way.
My lack of appreciation for the home team didn’t alter the way I perceived and respected the NBA. Rather, it made me a fan of individual talent, as opposed to a specific squad. That being said, when Russ and KD came to town, I was ecstatic. Here were two of my favorite players, balling out in their mid-20s, rocking some fire threads. By this point, Durant had already cemented himself as an all-time scorer, and Russ was a stone’s throw away from morphing into a walking triple double. Because of all this, prior to tipoff, my energy from the stands matched KD’s in the photo below.
Much to my delight, when the game began, both Russ and KD got off to incredible starts. At the end of the of the first quarter, they were the only players in double-figures. Durant had a cool 12, and Russ had 11 on 5-of-6 shooting. By half, they each had 17, and the Thunder went into the locker room up 11. Since I was technically on enemy lines, I had to contain my excitement, but inside, I was super stoked to see them shine in the flesh.
When the game resumed, the Thunder erupted, outscoring the Celtics by 16 points in the third to increase their lead to 27. The game was over before the final buzzer, as Russ didn’t even check back in for the fourth, and Durant played just a handful of minutes before coming out. Despite both stars playing under 30 minutes, they each ended with impressive stat lines. Durant finished with 28 points, 9 assists, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks, while Russ had 24 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals. As a sports-stat enthusiast, seeing two of the best stuff up the stat sheet in limited time was pretty awesome.
At the final horn, it was Thunder 130, Celtics, 109. A happy moment for me, but a frustrating one for the 99.9% of the Boston faithful. Post-2016, both Russ and KD went on to rewrite NBA history in their own way, so getting to say that I saw some them dominate in-person, right at the tail-end of their time together, is something I’m very grateful for.
LIFE LESSON: Witness as much greatness as you can. It’ll inspire you to chase it.
Jeremy’s Journal is Jeremy’s way of expressing his gratitude to the world. At the end of each 500-1,000 word post, he will include a ‘Life Lesson’ of some kind. His goal is to remind himself, and his readers, how awesome everyone’s journey can be when perceived through the proper lens.