#Skip Bayless responds to Kevin Durant ‘really don’t like u’ tweet
“#Skip Bayless responds to Kevin Durant ‘really don’t like u’ tweet”
Wheels keep on spinning round, spinning round, spinning round.
Those are lyrics from a song by the alternative rock group Cake, but they also describe the endless cycle of prominent sports opinionists eliciting responses from star athletes, and then responding to the responses.
The latest installment came this week when FS1 host Skip Bayless actually complimented Nets star Kevin Durant, in comparison to LeBron James. Bayless deems James to have less of a killer instinct than Durant, to which Durant responded, “I really don’t like u.”
If you thought that Durant’s acknowledgement was not going to be fodder for a response segment from Bayless on “Undisputed,” you have either been living on Jupiter or were cryogenically frozen like Austin Powers.
Boiling down Bayless’ six-minute rant, he essentially said that he has had nothing but praise for Durant’s on-court prowess throughout his career. However, he has criticized him for lashing out at people on social media and for creating burner accounts.
“He’s as strange off the court as he is on the court,” Bayless said. “Dare I say, it occurred to me [Wednesday] night that this weird strategy is Jordanesque. What do we know about Michael Jordan? He constantly fabricated beefs with rival players and coaches that didn’t even exist to whip himself into a competitive frenzy before games.”
Bayless said he believes Durant is on his way to becoming the greatest player in the NBA since Jordan, but that “he needs to motivate himself by creating some sort of controversy — this feud — with media members, especially those that actually “love him the most.”
Durant, who may or may not have been responding to this TV segment in real-time, tweeted, “Knew I needed love but I think I value the hate more….”
Being embroiled in a feud with Bayless — or others, like Colin Cowherd and Stephen A. Smith — is kind of an unwinnable chess match for star athletes. If they ignore criticism from pundits, it will continue. But, responding gives the subject even bigger oxygen, builds fodder for their shows and convinces their bosses that they are relevant and “cutting through” because star athletes do not respond to nobodies.
You have to tip your cap to Bayless on the strategy here. Durant’s tweet about hating him was on Tuesday night. Bayless did not respond on Wednesday, presumably knowing that there would be a news cycle about the tweet regardless. Instead, Bayless waited until Thursday, at which time he had more time to prepare and was able to reignite the cycle.
Wheels keep on spinning round, indeed.
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