Up Next

NBA

Kevin Durant makes himself at home in the Bay Area

From riding BART to rocking Oaklandish clothing, KD is getting comfortable in his new city

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr isn’t worried about newcomer Kevin Durant’s conditioning — in part thanks to Kanye West.

Durant attended West’s high-energy, sold-out concert at Oracle Arena on Sunday night in the latest episode of his quick indoctrination into Bay Area life. The 2014 NBA MVP caused a stir when he arrived to a crowd chanting, “K.D … K.D ….” Durant caused an even bigger stir when he joined a wild mosh pit twice while West performed on a floating stage above him.

West also took notice of the new Bay Area resident, saying, “Hold up, hold up. KD, I see you down there,” during the concert.

“I cut practice shorter [Sunday], but I saw he got a great workout last night,” Kerr said after the Warriors’ practice on Monday.

Durant was surrounded by stunned concert goers who tried to get in close and take pictures, but never felt concerned for his safety. His bodyguard and members of the Oracle Arena security were on hand to help him enjoy the wild mosh pit without being overwhelmed. Even Warriors guard Stephen Curry joined Durant for a couple of minutes in the mosh pit.

“That was different. It was fun, man,” Durant said. “That whole experience is something I never felt before. I was happy that I was able to do that and get a chance to go.”

Durant said videos of the West concerts “don’t do it justice.”

“It was nuts. Seeing all the [concert] videos throughout the summer, I never got a chance to go to a show. I was always moving around, Olympics, traveling a lot. I’m glad it came through here. I was telling my friends the whole summer I wanted to get in the mosh pit. It was amazing,” Durant said.

Durant played with the Seattle SuperSonics during his first NBA season and the Oklahoma City Thunder the next eight. The four-time NBA scoring champ signed with the Warriors during the offseason to a two-year, $54.3 million contract. He didn’t have much of an opportunity to enjoy the Bay Area after signing, since he was playing for USA Basketball at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Since his return from Brazil, Durant has landed a home with a view and quickly engrossed himself in what the Bay Area has to offer off the court. He has enjoyed fine dining in San Francisco, gone to a music store in Berkeley with rapper and Bay Area native Sage the Gemini, has been seen wearing the Oakland, California-based clothing brand Oaklandish, and checked out the Golden Gate Bridge.

Durant even took the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) subway train last Saturday, going on a trek for about 15 stops. The Washington, D.C., native said the Bay Area is “starting to feel like home” and riding the BART reminded him of his youth taking the subway to high school.

“I just tried to get out and touch the people a little bit,” Durant said. “I just want to let them know I’m here.”

Durant will make his Warriors debut on Tuesday in the season-opener against the San Antonio Spurs. Kerr said Durant is “light-years ahead” from where he was at the start of training camp after becoming more comfortable with the up-tempo style of play. Durant doesn’t appear nervous at all about his anticipated Warriors debut.

“As the years and years go on, you just get more and more calm for the first game,” Durant said. “It’s just the first game. We definitely want to set out a tone for the season. But if we win, we’re not going to be too excited. I’m just going to try to be level and just go out there and do my job.”

Marc J. Spears is the senior NBA writer for Andscape. He used to be able to dunk on you, but he hasn’t been able to in years and his knees still hurt.