When you’re a great player, legacy is something spectators will always keep top of mind. Kevin Durant is unequivocally a great player. And there is potentially no one in the NBA’s history who can score in the ways that he can. He is absolutely a one-of-one. So without a doubt, it’s for that reason that he is so heralded. Now in yesteryear’s NBA culture, most great players either stayed with one team, or they moved once they were a lot older. Kevin Durant, however, has made a career of moving to the beat of his own drum.

During the summer of 2016, Durant famously signed with the Golden State Warriors during free agency, ESPN reported. This decision was made by him after losing a grueling seven-game series with Golden State. His move to sign with the team that eliminated him was scrutinized to no end, and I understood. This decision landed the former league MVP his first NBA championship. As you know, in present day, we really put some stank on some rings. So he went and achieved that goal, twice over.

What I don’t believe anyone expected was that Durant would ever be on the move again. But that’s exactly what happened during the summer of 2019. With a whole ton of cap room freed up in Brooklyn, the former NBA Finals MVP joined Kyrie Irving on the Brooklyn Nets. As a Brooklynite myself, I was excited for this until Kenny Atkinson, the Nets’ head coach, was inexplicably let go. That could serve as a story for another day.

But back to the lecture at hand, Durant was traded from the Nets in 2023. This was a result of him and James Harden having some injury issues and not being able to be on the court enough at the same time. Not to mention, during the height of the pandemic, Irving decided against getting vaccinated which went against New York state laws for businesses at that time. So much of Durant’s stint in New York wasn’t even with their storied franchise. Unfortunately, with the Nets, his play was amazing, but no indelible mark was left.

So in 2023, Durant ended up in Phoenix with the Suns. It’s where he currently plays, but with his name being thrown around during the trade deadline, it seems his time there is now borrowed as well. The perennial 50-40-90 performer could be headed to his fifth team via trade this summer. To the larger public, we’ve never seen a player be on these many teams and perform as highly as Durant continues to. I think winning aside, this is more of his legacy than anything.

Durant won’t have a team that necessarily helped define him. And his nomadic career trajectory does take a little bit of grandeur out of how we remember his moments. But the fact that he wasn’t a scrub on any roster is damn impressive. It’s a testament to his commitment to greatness. As Stephen A. Smith might say, he has never cheated the game. That above all else may really be his lasting legacy.

Musiq Soulchild’s debut album was called Aijuswanaseing, pronounced like “I Just Wanna Sing.” Durant has clearly made it known that he doesn’t worry about how the media contextualizes his legacy. He has always done things his way. He is all about the game no matter where it’s played. So to me, Durant’s lasting legacy is “Aijuswanahoop.” And I think that, and that alone fits his enigmatic and unique persona.