Nets-Bucks: Kevin Durant has finally, indisputably claimed title of best basketball player in the world

Durant led the Nets to a crucial, comeback victory against the Bucks nearly single-handedly

Kevin Durant played all 48 minutes in Brooklyn's Game 5 upset victory against the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday. He was the first player to do so in a postseason game since LeBron James in 2018. It's a fitting bit of trivia for Durant, who has spent practically his entire career chasing James for the unofficial title of greatest basketball player on Earth. It's a race he famously acknowledged in a 2013 interview with Sports Illustrated.  "I've been second my whole life," Durant told Lee Jenkins. "I was the second best player in high school. I was the second pick in the draft. I've been second in the MVP voting three times. I came in second in the Finals. I'm tired of being second. I'm not going to settle for that. I'm done with it." He might have been done with it, but it took the rest of the basketball world years to catch up. Durant's decision to join the 73-win Golden State Warriors in 2016 almost disqualified him from contention for "best in the world" status. How could a player fairly be compared to his peers when he got to play with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green while they didn't? Even as Durant won titles with the Warriors, the degree of difficulty was so low in the minds of fans that James was still the consensus choice.