How to play basketball like kevin durant

Do you want to be able to score more points efficiently? If so, you have to learn from one of the best in NBA history. Here’s how to be a good scorer in basketball like Kevin Durant.

During the NBA Finals in 2019, Kevin Durant ruptured his Achilles. I would share the video, but it’s gruesome and I just don’t want to.

Anyhow, Durant injured it as he went up for a pull-up jumper. It was a severe injury and not only did he have to miss the remainder of the Finals, but he also sat out all of the following season.

Prior to his injury, he was considered a top 3 player in the league. Some even believed he was the best one.

So, critics and fans alike, wondered if Durant’s game would change. They also wondered if he would continue to be a dominant player.

It was the first game of the season with his new team, the Brooklyn Nets. They faced off against his former team, the Golden State Warriors.

AdvertisementsThe 32-year-old went into the game guns ablaze and scored 22 points on 43.8 percent shooting.

He was also rebounding, blocking, stealing, and assisting (let’s just say he put in a complete stat line and his fantasy managers were happy with it).

He played like his old self before the injury. He was still crossing players up, pulling up for his patented mid-range jumpers, and attacking the basket.

And what’s even more important than that is Durant was able to perform with excellence in the following games as well.

AdvertisementsIt wasn’t one of those performances where it only happened because he was excited and full of adrenaline.

He was able to repeat it.

So, how was KD able to not lose a step after a serious injury? Well, it’s mainly because of his playstyle.

See, Durant isn’t a flashy or explosive player. His game doesn’t require a lot of athleticism.

He’s tall and lengthy, so he’s able to shoot over most players and his shooting fundamentals are great.

He also has good handles and footwork, where he can easily get open against most defenders.

But the thing that makes his game elite is his balance and shooting ability. It’s the combination of these two things (and his ability to read and exploit defenders) that make KD an unstoppable scorer.

Prior to joining the Golden State Warriors, Durant was already a phenomenal scorer.

Many people thought that was as good as he was going to get (when it came to scoring). But his game actually became more efficient.

Now, having Steph Curry and Klay Thompson on his team definitely played a part in that.

But I truly believe most of Durant’s improvement came from his tutorials with former NBA MVP Steve Nash.

I don’t remember when exactly it happened, but videos of Durant and Nash training together started to circulate the web.

They were doing these weird shooting exercises where, in one of them, Durant balanced on one foot before going up for a pull-up shot.

Even he found the drills odd, telling reporters that Nash was basketball’s Yoda.

At the time, I didn’t realize this, but the exercises that Nash taught Durant are similar to the ones that Dirk Nowitzki did.

And I’m not that surprised. Nash and Nowitzki were teammates and are best friends, so I’m sure they trade their basketball knowledge.

Well, the first thing you should do is increase your balance.

You can do this by strengthening your core and stability muscles with the Steph Curry core workout.

Second, you should do shooting drills that will help you master the mechanics of the shot, such as the Con Man Drill (which you can learn here), because, well, the fundamentals are important.

This is the closest thing to the drills that Nash has Durant do. It’ll help you work on your balance, coordination, and shooting ability.

Kevin Durant is arguably the best scorer in the NBA. But he doesn’t achieve this by being the most athletic player.

AdvertisementsSo, if you want to become elite like him, you have to master the fundamentals of shooting too.

Kevin Durant Shooting Drills and Workout

The Kevin Durant shooting workout is a great workout because it incorporates shooting, ball handling, footwork, and finishing drills that you will use in game-like situations.

These are the type of drills that the pros use to get better.

In this article, you will learn a super-efficient way to get open that Kevin Durant does all of the time. Below, you will also see a video that Kevin demonstrates the move and a second video of the Kevin Durant shooting workout that we've been taking some of our players through.

Kevin Durant frequently uses this super-efficient and easy way to get open, but for some reason, very few people use this cut. It also takes a lot less energy.

It's called the post cut. You take the defender down to the mid-post or high post area, post up on the defender, as soon as you feel like you have the defender on your back, you put your hand up and cut out to the perimeter to create space. Sometimes, you don't even have to cut. You can just step out and use a reverse pivot to create space.

Below, we have a sample video of the move used by Kevin Durant.

You only have to watch 0:52 to 1:02 in the video.

In the video above, Durant just steps out, but you can also cut out and use the same footwork as you can see in the workout video below.

It's very important that you step out and get ready to shoot as quickly as possible. If you are open and can consistently make the shot, you shoot the ball. If the defense takes away your shot, now you should take advantage of the defense closing out and blow by the defense. You will see a series of shooting progressions below.

Beginner - 5 shots attempted on each side of the court.

Shoot 5 free throws.
Intermediate - 5 shots made on each side of the court. Make 5 free throws.
Advanced - 10 shots made on each side of the court. Make 10 Free throws.

Once you have developed consistency with your footwork and your shooting, this can be a great way to simulate games where you rarely get the same shot twice in a row. It is also a great way to practice game-like free throw shooting with only 2 free throws at a time.

For example, you might choose a series of 3 to 5 shots. If you take the drill above, here is a sample that you can do.

1. Post Cut - Reverse Pivot - Shot.
2. Post Cut - Reverse Pivot - Sweep - Lay Up.
3. Post Cut - Reverse Pivot - Sweep - Shot.
4. Two Free Throws.

You might look at this workout and think, "Duh.

There isn't anything special there." Well, there isn't anything special in WHAT you do, but what separates the great players from the good players and the good players from the okay players is HOW you do things. Pro players incorporate these same drills and they probably use a lot of the same drills that you use, but what makes them great is HOW they execute the drills.

You need to get the defender on your back. Otherwise, the initial cut won't be open.

You need to repeatedly practice the step-out and reverse pivot at full speed so you can get the shot off in a split second while making a high-percentage of your shots. If you don't, the defense can easily take it away because the defense has more time to recover to contest your shot and get set to defend the dribble drive.

As long as you become effective with your step-out and reverse pivot in progression 1, this will force the defense to close out at full speed. If you have the defender closing out at full speed, this puts you at a huge advantage to drive by the defender because they have to sprint at full speed to stop your shot, then they have to stop, and then they go in the opposite direction to stop your dribble drive. You have the advantage! This is how SLOW players like Larry Bird were so effective.

Now, it's also important that you get to the basket in one dribble. This will get you to the basket quicker and put more pressure on the defense. If you don't, it allows recovery time for the defense to take away an easy basket that you could have had.

Progression 3 is set up by being great at progression 1 and 2.

If you don't have the mentality to aggressively attack the basket (progression 2) after somebody takes away your initial shot (progression 1), the jump shot will not be open.

In order to be effective, you need to create separation with the dribble. Otherwise, the dribble will not get you anywhere and the same defender who you initially had an advantage against can disrupt your pull up jump shot. You see this often when the defender blocks the shooter from behind.

Dribble hard at the chair, snap the ball below the knees and close to the body on the change of direction. Make it game-like.

Progression 4 is another counter to Progression 1 and 2. If the help defense slides over (second chair), you can now change directions with the dribble and attack the rim. If you are not aggressive with your dribble, the defender can attack and control what you do. By being aggressive with the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd dribble (if needed to score the lay up), this puts the defense on their heels and gives the advantage back to you.

In the video above, we used 3 dribbles because we were working on becoming effective with a low crossover with this player. You can also perform the drill with 2 dribbles by using the push crossover which players like Dwyane Wade and Manu Ginobli are highly effective at.

Progression 5 is a counter to Progression 1, 2, and 4. Now the defense is sending everybody at you because you're destroying your man and even picking apart the first line of help defense.

After you change directions at the first help defender (second chair), the defense has sent everybody to the lane, so now you pull up for a jump shot. Just like on progression 3, you need to create separation with your dribble. So make sure to snap that change of direction dribble to cover lots of ground to open up space for your jumper.

Dribble hard at the third chair, you have to make the defender commit to open up the finish counter whether it's a drop step (spin), step through (up and under), a Rondo, side step (Euro Step), or any other creative, effective finishing move.

This is a counter to progression 1, 2, and 4. If the help defense slides over to stop you after your change of direction dribble, you can use a finishing counter to attack the defense and get to the rim. However, this isn't effective if you don't perfect the details. If you dribble at the 2nd help defender (3rd chair) hesitantly, they can easily cover your finishing counter move and disrupt your shot. It's vital that you dribble at the 3rd chair as aggressively as you can, this will get you in the habit of getting that help defender on their heels which will leave your finishing counter move wide open.

Now, you certainly don't need to perfect all of the progressions to be a good player.

You should work on perfecting the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd progressions. Besides being better than 99% of the players out there after you perfect those 3 progressions, you can start to add the additional progressions.

Wanted to give a special thanks to Don Kelbick for being a huge influence on our training methods and making us better coaches which leads to better players.

Also wanted to give a special thanks to Kyle Wolf who is the shooter in the video below. Kyle is a 6'6 forward at Rockhurst High School (Class of 2013) in Kansas City, Missouri.

(Updated 12/4/2014 - Kyle went on to win the Missouri Gatorade Player of the Year in 2013 and led his team to a Class 5 state championship. In 2014 during his freshmen year, he started in 18 games and was a key contributor for Central Missouri University as they went on to win the NCAA Division 2 National Championship. Hard work with an organized plan pays off.)

to improve your game!

Playing Away: How NBA Superstar Kevin Durant Invests in Startups with 400% Returns

Kevin Durant, one of the highest paid basketball players in the world, can earn more than $500 million during his professional career from contracts with clubs and advertising. This is not enough: his goal is to become a billionaire and the owner of his own NBA club. To do this, Durant builds his business empire and invests in Silicon Valley startups with a 400% return

The interior of Kevin Durant's huge apartment overlooking the High Line Park in Lower Manhattan perfectly reflects the inner world of its owner.

The basketball player keeps himself in great shape and seems even taller than his 208 cm. Sitting on a huge blue velvet sofa, the NBA superstar is preparing to give an interview to Forbes. The sofa offers stunning views not only of the skyline of New York, but also of a room filled with various trophies. On the shelves are NBA regular season and NBA All-Star MVP awards, as well as other prizes (Durant keeps two NBA championship rings won with the Golden State Warriors in his bedroom.

But the basketball player is not focused on past triumphs, but on new challenges. Across from the trophy room are a Pilates machine and a giant cage-like Sensopro coordination and endurance machine. Durant is currently recovering from a severe Achilles tendon injury he sustained in June while playing in the NBA Finals in front of 18 million television viewers. Despite the fact that the titled athlete missed the last matches of last season and, most likely, will miss the entire current season, he continues to prepare for his return to duty.

“Now the most important thing for me is to take care of my body so that I can return to the basketball court,” the basketball player says after training. He wears a sweatshirt with a picture of the anti-hero from the movie "A Clockwork Orange" and black and orange Jordan sneakers. “How well I play will determine how big my business will become,” adds the NBA superstar.

This summer, Durant signed a $164 million deal with the Brooklyn Nets, and prior to that, a ten-year, $275 million sponsorship deal with Nike. Through those deals alone, he will earn over $70 million this season without ever appearing on the field. Durant's goal is to turn that income into assets and make a fortune that Michael Jordan and LeBron James would envy.

How Michael Jordan created one of the most expensive tequila brands in the world

The Brooklyn Nets are Durant's fourth basketball team. He began his career with the Seattle SuperSonics, who soon moved to Oklahoma and changed their name to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

It was there that Durant became an NBA superstar. He then shocked Oklahoma fans by signing with the Golden State Warriors and moving to the San Francisco Bay Area. It was there that Durant became an NBA champion - and an entrepreneur.

With the Brooklyn Nets, Durant set out to prove three things to the world. Firstly, that he will be able to return to action and become a champion again after a serious injury, which he received in front of several million people. Secondly, that he could win an NBA championship with a team where he would be the star. Thirdly, that he will be able to apply in New York, the world capital of finance, media and fashion, what he learned in Silicon Valley. “When I walk around New York, I understand that very purposeful people live here, ready to work hard to achieve their goals,” says the basketball player.

A few years ago, Kevin Durant founded Thirty Five Ventures. His business partner is his manager and music industry veteran Rich Kleiman, who previously helped rapper Jay-Z launch Roc Nation Sports. Thirty Five Ventures has 15 employees. They deal with the basketball player's advertising contracts and his investment portfolio. Over the past few years, Durant has invested more than $15 million in more than 40 startups. 70% of these companies increased their valuation during subsequent rounds. Durant claims paper yields are in excess of 400%.

Thirty Five Ventures also has a production division that produces basketball documentaries, series and shows for Apple, YouTube and ESPN. “LeBron James was the first to build a real business before the end of his sports career. Kevin is also building a real business,” emphasizes Kleiman.

The former Forbes 30 Under 30 recently turned 31. Now his goal is to increase his fortune to ten figures. By the end of his professional basketball career, he will earn more than $500 million through club contracts and sponsorship deals. “I want to use the money I get from companies so that I can pass on my wealth to my kids,” Durant says.

Slum investor

Durant grew up near the US capital, in Prince George's County, Maryland. He was raised by a single mother. He lived in a disadvantaged area, in which one had to carefully look around, moving along the street alone. Durant mostly looked down - already in high school he was 183 cm tall. By the age of 17, he became the most valuable player in the school league all-star team according to McDonald's. After high school, Durant entered the University of Texas and at the age of 18 became the best player in the student championship.

At 19years, he became the NBA Rookie of the Year and was soon recognized as the most valuable player in the NBA regular season. While playing for the Oklahoma City Thunder, he reached the Western Conference Finals several times. In 2016, he decided to move to a team that he had not been able to defeat as part of the Oklahoma City Thunder. So he signed a contract with the Golden State Warriors for $54 million. This move changed his life dramatically and allowed him to create his own business.

The basketball player first became interested in the business in 2014 when choosing between Nike and Under Armor sponsorship deals. “Thanks to this, I learned a lot about business. It opened my eyes,” Durant recalls. In Oklahoma City, he had few business opportunities. “There you could only do oil business or real estate. However, this is a kind of old-timers' club, and it would be difficult for me to get into it, ”says the athlete. Back in Oklahoma, Durant and Kleiman turned their attention to tech companies and invested in Postmates and fintech startup Acorns.

By moving to San Francisco, Durant has unique access to the best startups in the world. “All the founders and investors came to the Golden State Warriors games. I was able to meet and communicate with them. They look like ordinary people, but they are changing the world so quickly and have tremendous power, ”says the basketball player.

Durant soon became friends with Lauren Powell Jobs, Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, Airbnb's Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia, and executives at Google and Apple. For founders of Silicon Valley startups, Durant's investments were a tidbit, because thanks to the fame of the titled athlete, journalists and potential clients paid attention to them. Soon, the basketball player became an investor in the Coinbase crypto exchange, the fintech startup Robinhood Markets, the Caffeine TV streaming service, the Imperfect Food grocery delivery service, the Lime electric scooter rental service, and many other companies.

“Here he learned how to start a company and how to invest properly. He was an NBA champion, and everyone, of course, was very interested in what drives him. Kevin was smart and took full advantage of meeting different people,” recalls Apple senior vice president of software Eddie Cue, describing how he met Durant over dinner and ended up talking to him until three in the morning.

Following in the footsteps of Michael Jordan

Will Durant's tactic work in New York? The business capital of America is considered more multifaceted, and people there are not in awe of celebrities. However, we must still give him credit, as he managed to absorb the spirit of the city in both San Francisco and New York. He settled in a skyscraper with a beautiful view of Manhattan, from where he can walk to the Chelsea area, where the new headquarters of Thirty Five Ventures with an area of 420 square meters is located.

m. “New York will be the culmination of the development of our company. Here live representatives of various communities with whom Kevin communicates. This will take our company to the next level,” says business partner of the basketball player Rich Kleiman. Years ago, he met Durant through a mutual friend. Rapper Wale introduced him to the NBA star at a Jay-Z concert in Madison Square Garden.

In New York, Durant is building his own media company. He devotes a lot of time to creating the series Swagger about his youth, which is filmed with the support of Hollywood producer Brian Grazer. Thanks in part to Durant's friendship with Apple's Eddie Cue, the series will be released on Apple's new streaming service. In addition, the basketball player makes short videos for his YouTube channel, which has nearly 800,000 subscribers.

He also became the producer of the ESPN cable TV show The Boardroom, launched the website of the same name about the business of titled athletes and the mailing list. “The younger generation wants to get closer to their heroes and does not tolerate fake stories,” said James Pitaro, head of ESPN.

All these projects are an excellent marketing solution and a worthwhile investment. However, now everything depends on the simulators in Durant's apartment. No player of his stature has ever returned to action after an Achilles tendon rupture and started playing at the same level as before the injury. No player in nearly half a century has led a team from the nation's biggest city, which is crazy about basketball, to an NBA victory. “We are only working on creating a shared vision for our team. This is a more thorough process. Everyone understands what goal we have set. All the players brought some new experience with them. If we become NBA champions, it will be a completely different level.

It would be nice to charge New York with the energy of basketball,” the athlete believes.

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If Durant manages to rehabilitate from injury, he will tirelessly reap the fruits of his labor. Fintech startup Acorns and electric scooter rental service Lime could succeed or fail without it. With new projects and assets of his own, Durant is now in complete control of his own destiny. Nothing will stop him. “I want to become the owner of one of the NBA clubs. I want to manage the team and set an example for young players who come to the league,” Kevin Durant shares his plans. This is the path that Michael Jordan once chose to become a billionaire.

“I started from the bottom,” Durant says, and to illustrate his point, he leans over and touches the floor with his hand. “I know that someday I will have children.

I want them to start their journey differently from me. The only way to ensure a good life for them is to earn money. I don't want to just be greedy and save money. I want to earn them with the help of cool projects, ”the basketball player emphasizes.

24 facts about Kevin Durant

Our column with facts continues. We decided to tell you about a player who is (rightly) considered one of the greatest attacking players.

He moved to Brooklyn to once again write his name in the history of basketball. These are 24 facts about KD.

Our fact sheet continues. We decided to tell you about a player who is (rightly) considered one of the greatest attacking players. He moved to Brooklyn to once again write his name in the history of basketball. These are 24 facts about KD.

When I was a child, I wanted to be a weatherman to tell the weather forecast on TV.

Played exactly one year for the University of Texas, after which he was immediately drafted and selected by the Seattle team, which later moved to Oklahoma.

In his debut (and only) student season, he became the best player in the league and won many personal trophies.

On the NBA draft combine, he was unable to bench press his weight, which was the norm for all participants.

Immediately after signing for Seattle, he signed a deal with Nike that offered him $60 million over 7 years. Only one player received more in the first season - LeBron James.

His exact height is still unknown. Kevin refuses to take measurements because he once dreamed of being the same height as Michael Jordan, but when he outgrew him, he no longer saw the point in measurements.

In 2009, he made it to the NBA Rising Stars Game, where he set an all-time scoring record. He scored 46 points. To this day, this record remains unbroken.

KD is the second youngest player in NBA history to reach 10,000 league points. Only LeBron managed to do it faster.

Two-time NBA Champion with GSV, where he won the Finals Player of the Year title twice.

He is fond of photography and even photographed for one of the Super Bowl news agencies.

Jerseys, T-shirts, sweatshirts and socks with the logos of your favorite NBA teams can be purchased at the Streetball store.