CJ McCollum is in a no-win situation.
If his Portland Trail Blazers defeat the Warriors in the upcoming Western Conference finals, the 20-point-per-game guard will have to concede that he was shamelessly agitating this past summer when, chatting with Kevin Durant on a podcast, he insinuated that the Dubs broke the NBA. How? By recruiting Durant as a free agent in 2016, and scooping up DeMarcus Cousins last summer, therefore assembling a nearly unbeatable Colossus.
“Why are you mad about this stuff?” Durant asked during the podcast heard ’round the conference.
“Bro, I’m in the league,” McCollum said. “What do you mean why am I mad about this stuff? I’m in the Western Conference. I’ve got to play you (expletives) all the time.”
On the other hand, if the Blazers lose for real, they, uh, lose for real.
From here, the upcoming series does not look like a mismatch. Portland won 53 games during the regular season, splitting four regular season tilts with the Warriors. They took down Oklahoma City on Damian Lillard’s close-out 3-pointer launched from Crater Lake. And they dispatched Denver in the conference semis.
What is it the kids say? “Best not sleep on these guys.”
A lot of water has passed under the Belknap Bridge since the podcast caused a kerfuffle last summer. But it still resonates. Initially it had the vibe of a jocular conversation. At one point, McCollum opined that the Blazers had all the ingredients to win a title.
“You know you guys aren’t going to win a championship,” replied the currently injured Durant, who hopes to return at some point during the Portland series.
Shortly thereafter McCollum upped the ante, dropping a “soft” reference on Durant, intimating Durant took the easy way out by leaving OKC for Golden State.
“U think that low of me CJ?” Durant replied on Twitter “I just did your (expletive) podcast. Snakes in the grass boy I tell ya.”
A few weeks later, appearing on Chinese television, McCollum took another swipe at Durant and Cousins.
“I think some players will take that route, but most guys have too much pride, want to really win on their own or in their certain organizations, and aren’t going to just jump on the bandwagon.
“I’m not built like those guys, I was raised differently.”
