Kevin Durant Getting Two The Easy Way
Kevin Durant began working on the newest addition to his offensive arsenal back on Oct. 11 during a preseason game at Golden State.
Only now is he coming close to perfecting it.
Durant is now baiting defenders into fouls and getting an easy trip to the free throw line at least once a game by sweeping the ball through his defender’s arms. It’s a move that San Antonio forward Tim Duncan has patented and players like Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson and Dwight Howard routinely use to get easy points at the foul line.
“It’s a good move if the defender has an extended arm that’s not vertically raised,” said Thunder coach Scott Brooks. “Guys have to guard him close and squeeze up on him because he has such a nice (shooting) stroke. So when guys do that it gives him the ability to draw those fouls.”
Durant pulled the move against Golden State guard Stephen Jackson in the second half of the Thunder’s loss at Golden State last Saturday. He got Los Angeles Lakers forward Trevor Ariza with the move with 3:48 remaining Tuesday at the Ford Center.
“I’ve been watching guys hands and arms to see how close they are to my body, and if they’re all the way off that’s when I’ve got an opportunity to shoot my shot,” Durant said. ”If they’re on me too close, I sweep it through and try to get some free throws. I think that kind of gets me going a little bit.”
Follow
