8 July 2018
Kevin Durant has no idea of what’s going to happen in the future. All he knows is that time flies so fast and nothing lasts forever, that’s why the back-to-back NBA champion and Finals MVP is cherishing every moment of his journey as much as he can.
“I don’t know what’s gonna happen in the future, so I’m just right here. I don’t even know what’s gonna happen tomorrow or what’s gonna happen down the line, so I’m staying in the moment as best as I can, try to get as much as I can out of this moment,” Durant shared during the media session of the Kevin Durant Manila Tour 2018 sponsored by Nike Sunday at the Whitespace Manila in Makati City.
“What we’re going right now doesn’t last forever. As basketball players we got a short amount of time where we wanna maximize our physical abilities, so I’m just trying to stay in the moment. It’s been so fun, it’s been a blur, I remember the first time making one of these trips seems like yesterday, so I’m just trying to stay in the moment as much as possible,” he added.
While Durant is staying in the moment to the best of his abilities, that doesn’t take away his desire anyway to reach higher heights at this point of his career where he has already achieved a lot.
But that mentality, that grind, to accomplish more is not just for his self as he wants to share what he’ll learn in that process to up-and-coming basketball players.
“I just want to continue to experience more (achievements), I know that I worked my way up to a point that I can give back the information, knowledge, and wisdom that I’ve learned in this game and hopefully I can give back (more) to younger players,” related Durant who’s in town to promote his latest Nike signature shoe, the KD 11.
Speaking of his new kicks, Durant is proud to be in the same category as Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James who also had over 10 versions of their signature shoes.
“It means so much, I can’t even put it into words, when you’re in the same category as Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James who got 10-plus shoes, what else do you ask for as a basketball player,” Durant said.
“The guys you idolize and want to be in the same category, the elite class, it’s pretty cool to be there, I’m proud of that, and I’ll keep working to stay in that group, I think that’s my shoe symbolizes.”
After the media session, Durant went straight to the Smart Araneta Coliseum to take part in an exhibition game with the country’s finest collegiate basketball players like Thirdy Ravena, CJ Perez, and Paul Desiderio to name a few.
Although visibly rusty, Durant still put on a show – displaying his long-range shooting, dunking, and crazy ball-handling skills to the delight of the crowd. The four-time NBA scoring champion’s Hypercourt team, though, lost to the UAAP All-Stars squad, 85-82.
“It was my first time back on the court. I’m too tired,” Durant addressed the fans inside the Big Dome after the game.
He then hoisted basketballs signed by himself to the crowd to cap off the show.
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