NBA
Durant back in Oklahoma as Westbrook looks to down Warriors
Kevin Durant signed a contract with one of the best teams in the NBA, the Golden State Warriors, in the summer and will travel back to his former team, Oklahoma City Thunder, with Steph Curry and his new teammates on Sunday morning. Cavaliers @ Warriors live
All eyes will be on Oklahoma City and the Chesapeake Energy Arena on Sunday morning as the Thunder host the Golden State Warriors with their former All-Star and heartbeat Kevin Durant in tow. (The game starts at 02:30 CET)
The 28-year-old tested the free agency market during the offseason and Steve Kerr, Steph Curry and the Warriors wound up adding an exceptional player to an already exceptional team. He had it good in Oklahoma and said of his decision, "by far the most challenging few weeks in my professional life" but he has excelled in California and has outplayed the likes of Klay Thompson and Steph Curry, who are superstars in their own right.
Did it affect the Oklahoma City Thunder
The little point guard who could, Russell Westbrook, has been averaging a triple-double himself this year. He has already registered 26, which is enough for third all-time in a season, with over twenty games remaining in the regular season.
The Warriors are coming off an exceptional victory over the Memphis Grizzlies, posting 122 points against the stingiest defense in the NBA. Draymond Green recorded his own version of a triple-double with. He became the first NBA player to post a triple-double with less than 10 points.
The Thunder are 14.5 games behind the Warriors in the Western Conference but forget records, previous games and all the other noise surrounding the event. This is a showdown and a test to see how the hosts handle welcoming back (or not) their former hero. It is Westbrook versus Durant and is sure to be one of the games of the year.
Tickets
If you happen to find yourself in and around Oklahoma City tonight, a ticket for the game will cost you around €400, which is €83 higher than the previous record of €317 when LeBron James returned to Cleveland after jumping ship to Miami.