Durant hit a three-pointer over James, then blocked James’s shot before James drove inside for a layup. I tried to play as best as I can on the offensive end.”įans wanted James to respond directly at Durant, but many of his points came from getting out on the fast break and dunking. I played my hardest on the defensive end against him. “To have that type of opportunity to play against him, and just work on what I’ve been working on all summer, it’s was fun,” Durant said of James. He later completed a baseline drive and dunk around James, stared down James and did a little shimmy before knocking down a three-pointer over him. Durant quickly responded by dunking over Anthony and getting fouled. James, who finished with 38 points, then caught a sick alley-oop from Josh Selby, tipping the ball to a more ideal spot before dunking with both hands. James didn’t speak with reporters after the game, waiting for Paul to answer questions before he snuck out of the gym, surrounded by four police officers.īut the Durant-James battle really got started when James hit a pull-up jumper, then a turnaround jumper over Durant. I sided with Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul, so that I wouldn’t have to score 59. It’s back and I think we did a great job of competing for the fans.” L.A., Chicago, New York, D.C., Baltimore. “There’s nothing like it,” Anthony said of pickup basketball. James and Durant definitely got caught up, making those $40 tickets – $100 for floor seats – worth the price of admission. That’s the beauty of these summer league pick-up games, because players can defend their reputations and display their pride each possession, with fans goading them every step of the way. No coach would’ve allowed them to take the ball up and go at each other with step-back jumpers, stutter steps and crossover dribbles. Though it might be a matchup that we see in the NBA Finals someday – whenever the league comes back.

And, that’s when the game got interesting, when the talent disparity was overshadowed by a duel that most fans would never get treated to if the duo was playing an NBA game in Oklahoma City or Miami.

Rawls mentioned during the third quarter that Durant was “doing everything but cleaning the floor” but he couldn’t outscore James, Paul and Anthony all alone.Įarly on, Paul, Anthony and James took turns guarding Durant, until James decided to take on the lockout champ by himself. The Melo all-stars also had the high-flying Eric Bledsoe and Josh Selby, and the sharp-shooting Gary Neal to carry the load when the Big Three wasn’t lighting up the scoreboard.ĭurant scored 59 points, but for most of the night, it felt like watching the Eastern Conference Finals, when James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh combined to make Derrick Rose resemble a helpless one-way show. I’m excited I got that opportunity playing against some great players, playing with some great players as well,” Durant said after his team lost, 149-141, in a game that was lopsided until the final five minutes.ĭurant was aided by NBA players Jeff Green, Trevor Austin Daye, Roger Mason Jr., and Jarrett Jack, but the matchup against the Melo All-Stars was incredibly unfair - especially with DeMarcus Cousins and Jennings failing to appear, for some reason, placing more pressure on Durant. “Playing against those guys was a lot of fun for me. Rawls words would prove to be on point later in the evening, as the late-arriving Durant eagerly accepted the challenge of being the lone all-star for the Goodman League against the all-star trio of LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul that led the Melo League. You sure you want some of this? (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

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