Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant experienced significant success after joining the Golden State Warriors in 2016. The Warriors went on to win two consecutive NBA titles, with Durant being named the NBA Finals MVP for both series.

The Cleveland Cavaliers were Golden State’s NBA Finals opponents for four consecutive years. While the Cavaliers came away victorious in 2016, the following two series were relatively one-sided.

On a recent episode of Gil’s Arena, former Cavaliers player Iman Shumpert suggested that the team would’ve won more NBA championships if Durant hadn't signed with the Warriors.

“You the reason I missed out on two rings, dog. It was your fault how you went and joined some [explicit] that didn’t need you. You know what I’m saying? They didn’t need you.”

It is alleged that Durant responded to Shumpert’s claim through a now-deleted Threads comment. Reacting to a screenshot of the supposed deleted comment, Shumpert encouraged the NBA fanbase to debate the topic.

The Debate

When Durant joined the Warriors, the franchise was coming off a historic 73-win regular season run. Golden State featured the formidable trio of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green.

Curry had been named the league’s MVP, averaging 30.1 points on 45.4% three-point shooting over 79 games. Meanwhile, Thompson was named to the All-NBA Third Team, and Green finished in the top 10 for MVP voting.

Durant was also considered to be a top talent in the league, averaging 28.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 5.0 assists for the 2015-2016 season. He finished fifth in MVP voting and was named to the All-NBA Second Team. Two years prior, he won the MVP award.

Another definitive superstar from the 2010s is LeBron James, who made eight consecutive NBA Finals appearances. Based on James’ spotty 4-6 record, including one loss at the hands of the 2011 underdog Dallas Mavericks, it’s hard to project whether the Cavaliers could get over the hump in 2017 and 2018.

Regardless, Durant’s impact held Cleveland to one NBA Finals victory during his stint in Golden State. In contrast, the Warriors only held a 7-6 edge when combining the records from 2015 and 2016.

Overall, it is hard to argue that Durant was not the missing piece for the Warriors to extend their dynasty. It’s reasonable to presume that the trio of Curry, Thompson, and Green would’ve still dominated the NBA landscape in a hypothetical scenario, though the outcome remains one of the league’s biggest what-ifs.