Reggie Miller condemns Durant: 'A king should never leave his kingdom'

Whether warranted or not, Kevin Durant has earned a great deal of criticism for his decision to leave Oklahoma City and sign with the Golden State Warriors.

TNT analyst Reggie Miller is the among the group of people upset with Durant, with the longtime Indiana Pacer going as far as to suggest it will ultimately have an affect on how he's viewed next to the all-time greats.

"At the end of the day, what's more important, rings or legacy?" Miller wrote in an article for Bleacher Report. "The media only cares about rings, and rightfully so. We are judged on jewelry, so that's why I can't argue with it. From a personal standpoint, I'm upset that a small market will never recover from it."

Miller isn't the only retired player to condemn the 27-year-old for his decision to leave Oklahoma City, as TNT analyst Charles Barkley argued that Durant was trying to "cheat his way into a championship."

Related: Don't hate the player: Kevin Durant made the right basketball decision

"It's a bad look for the league once again," Miller said. "Between the huge signings of mediocre players and now KD defecting to the Warriors, there are really only five or six teams you are interested in watching - and only three of those have a real shot to win the championship. It's going to be a boring season unless the Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, San Antonio Spurs, New York Knicks, or Boston Celtics are on TNT or ESPN every week."

In fairness, the five-time All-Star had the opportunity to chase a ring back in 2007 with Boston, but struggled with the thought of playing for a team other than the Indiana Pacers.

"The Celtics wanted me to come out of retirement in 2007-08, when they won a title with Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett. I couldn't do it," Miller added. "There was an opportunity to join the Lakers at one point. I couldn't do that, either. And maybe I should have. But to me, a king should never leave his kingdom."