Kevin Durant Blames Himself for the 117-122 Defeat to Hawks

Tonight’s performance by Kevin Durant against the Atlanta Hawks was outstanding. However, Durant blamed himself for the Phoenix Suns‘ 117-122 defeat, especially for his scoring surge in the third quarter, even though he only scored 31 points on 65% FG.

KD scored 14 points on a very effective 6/7 shooting from the field to dominate the third quarter. The Suns outscored the Hawks 31–25 during that time thanks in large part to his offensive explosion.

Durant acknowledged that his scoring run may have hindered his teammates’ ability to play, even if his performance reduced the Suns’ deficit to just two points. He said: “Once I get going sometimes, it might stall the offense when I start making four or five shots in a row. So now I got to, and then people watching me play. But maybe that third, I’m for sure happy to knock down some shots. Yeah..I should have, you know, see if I can get guys going a little bit more in that third and maybe we can build some momentum. But, you know, I’m nitpicking at this point,”

“2nd chance points and fouls.”

Kevin Durant as Suns blew 9-point lead in 3rd of loss.

Atlanta 27 points off 20 offensive rebounds.

On Trae Young’s 43-piece: “He just got downhill on the pick-and-roll. We were playing in the drop a lot. He kind of got whatever he wanted.” #Suns pic.twitter.com/vL2nCbXPgR

— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) January 15, 2025

Kevin Durant speaks on missed rebounds

He also emphasized in the interview how the Hawks’ 20 offensive rebounds were a crucial factor in their defeat. Trae Young and company scored an incredible 27 second-chance points because the Hawks secured 14 more offensive rebounds than the Suns.

KD said: “20 offensive rebounds. And I’m sure at least, I want to say five or six of those threes was off the offensive rebound… 20 offensive rebounds in the team. 14 more shots, that’s the game.”

The Eastern Conference road trip hasn’t gotten off to the best start for Mike Budenholzer’s team. Durant and company will try to take advantage of these chances, capture important victories, and move up a notch or two in the Western Conference standings, though, as three of their next four games—against the Wizards, Pistons, and Nets—are rather favorable matchups.

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