Kevin Durant Wins Big at ESPY Awards
Former Longhorn basketball star Kevin Durant was honored twice during Wednesday night’s ESPY Awards, winning both the “Best NBA Player” and “Best Male Athlete” awards.
Durant, who currently plays small forward for the Oklahoma City Thunder, is the current 2014 NBA regular season MVP and led his team on a thrilling semifinal run, beating out first Memphis and then the Los Angeles Clippers before losing in six games to eventual champions, the San Antonio Spurs.
Durant’s wins unseat reigning winner LeBron James, who won both awards for the past two years. San Antonio forward Kawhi Leonard won “Best Championship Performance” for his MVP-winning performance in the NBA Finals, which James also won last year and the year before, meaning King James’ rule—at least at the ESPYs—is seemingly finished.
The otherwise light-hearted ceremony, which saw host Drake bust out his comedy chops by doing impressions of boxer Manny Pacquiao and starting fake beef with Clippers forward Blake Griffin, was punctuated by heartfelt speeches by rookie linebacker Michael Sam and ESPN personality Stuart Scott. Sam won the Arthur Ashe award for becoming the first openly gay player in the NFL, and Scott won the Jimmy V Award honoring his seven-year fight against cancer.
Drake had a shout-out for KD during a performance of his song “Worst Behavior,” changing a line to “real talent doesn’t always win championships like real music doesn’t always win Grammys,” and comparing the Thunder playoff loss to rapper Macklemore’s Grammy win over favorite Kendrick Lamar.
Photo courtesy Associated Press via Inquirer Sports
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