Durant responds after Kerr suggests conflicts marred KD's last Warriors season

Well, this is awkward.

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said Monday on the "Real Ones" podcast that he found more enjoyment during the Warriors' miserable 2019-20 season when they finished with a 15-50 record than he did in Kevin Durant's final year in Golden State when the team fell to the Toronto Raptors in the 2019 NBA Finals.

Kerr implied there were undisclosed conflicts within the squad that season but didn't go into specifics.

"I would tell you that the first four years of our run, the coaching was way more fun, just because we were joyful and everything was really simple and no agendas," he said. "And then, in that last year, things kind of went haywire. So, even though we went to the Finals, it was difficult. I enjoyed last season, when we had the worst record in the league, more than I enjoyed that last season when we went to the Finals because we had young guys last year who were trying every day, working hard.

"We had a great energy, great spirit, great comradery. Losing sucked but what you want is a good vibe - you want to look forward to going to the gym every day and seeing everybody. And that last year was tough. ... There was just a lot going on that you guys - some that you know about, some that you don't - and that was very difficult."

Kerr's comments caught Durant's attention, and the 32-year-old addressed them flippantly in a tweet.

However, after being informed of Durant's response, Kerr argued later that his quote was taken out of context.

"To take that comment and put it into a tweet and send it out into the universe was so irresponsible and damaging," he said, courtesy of The Athletic's Anthony Slater.

"And I'm angry, and I know what's going to happen. I know this is going to be taken out onto the morning shows, and people are going to be talking about it, and they're going to use what they think is a quote that is actually something that is completely made-up.

"I'm not happy. I think it's wrong."

Golden State won two titles during Durant's three seasons with the club, but Kerr's remarks are the latest to suggest that all was not well throughout the forward's time in the Bay Area.

Warriors general manager Bob Myers said last May that "it wasn't joy" the team felt when it won its second title with Durant in 2018. There was also an infamous heated exchange early during the 2018-19 season involving Durant and Draymond Green, resulting in the latter receiving a one-game suspension.

Finally, in an appearance on the "All The Smoke" podcast in February 2020, Durant admitted he knew midway through the 2018-19 campaign that it would be his last in Golden State.

"I knew just about halfway point through the year," Durant said then. "I could feel the separation between the two."

Durant left the Warriors that summer, penning a four-year, $164-million contract with the Brooklyn Nets.