KD on lack of parity: I'm not the reason why Magic, Nets stink

Kevin Durant has been under constant scrutiny ever since he exercised his free agency and changed locales.

The latest critique of the Golden State Warriors superstar is that he is to blame for a largely noncompetitive playoffs. The argument goes that Durant killed off parity in the NBA by weakening one contender to strengthen another.

Durant shot that idea down in an interview with Sam Amick of USA Today, pointing out that other organizations are culpable for their own failures. His offseason decisions had nothing to do with inept organizations remaining inept.

"I'm the reason why (expletive) Orlando couldn't make the playoffs for five, six years in a row?" Durant said. "Am I the reason that Brooklyn gave all their picks to Boston? Like, am I the reason that they're not that good (laughs).

"I can't play for every team, so the truth of the matter is I left one team. It's one more team that you probably would've thought would've been a contender. One more team. I couldn't have made the (entire) East better. I couldn't have made everybody (else) in the West better."

It's damned if you win, damned if you don't. Durant did what was best for him to win a title, which is all players ever get judged on, and now he's seeing criticism for taking the easy way out and ruining the league. He just can't win in the eyes of his detractors, which is why Durant pays them little mind.

"Certain stuff that used to bother you really doesn't bother you anymore," Durant said. "It's easier for me to kind of speak my mind, speak what I'm thinking because I now realize that I'm in control of my own destiny."