During a recent interview, Kevin Durant fielded a series of questions about his career. While answering, he shared his thoughts on losing out on an accolade to a future Hall of Famer.
Most of the questions Kevin Durant fielded from Taylor Rooks had to do with his debut with the Seattle Supersonics, such as who the opponent was and how many points he scored in the game. However, things then shifted to his career as a whole.
When asked about how many scoring titles he has won, KD answered correctly with four. He quickly chimed in and said it would have been five had it not been for Carmelo Anthony.
“Should have been five,” Durant said. “Melo, he took one.”
Despite being in his fifth season, Durant is still one of the NBA’s top scorers. Through the first quarter of the season, he is tied for fifth in points per game at 30.2. The top spot currently belongs to Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid at 35.0 PPG.
When did Carmelo Anthony beat out Kevin Durant for the scoring title?
The season that Kevin Durant mentioned was the 2012-13 campaign. Carmelo Anthony just barely beat him out for the scoring title, cutting off what would have been a historic run.
From the moment he entered the league, Durant was a special offensive talent. By his third season, he was already averaging over 30 points per game. This led to a run by the then OKC Thunder forward to win three-straight scoring titles.
In 2013, Durant looked well on his way to winning a fourth scoring title, but Anthony ended up getting in the way. During his second full season with the New York Knicks, the All-Star forward averaged 28.7 points. This was slightly better than Durant, who finished that season with 28.1. 2013 marked the only year in Anthony’s career where he led the NBA in scoring.
Durant ended up coming back in 2014 and winning his fourth scoring title. This still put him in impressive company, but winning five straight would have cemented him as one of the greatest scorers ever. Only Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain have won at least five consecutive scoring crowns.
With his four scoring titles, Durant matched Hall of Famers George Gervin and Allen Iverson. While he’s come close in some season, Durant hasn’t led the league in scoring since 2014.
Earlier this year, the Phoenix Suns start cracked the top 10 in all-time scoring with 27,676 points and counting.
