Kevin Durant expresses regret

OKLAHOMA CITY -- A candid Kevin Durant expressed regret on Tuesday for his comments critical of the media at All-Star Weekend.

Asked about the job security of his coach, Scott Brooks, Durant said Saturday, "You guys really don't know s---." On Tuesday, Durant spoke with reporters for more than 11 minutes, even encouraging more questions.

"Let's be real. Let's look at the whole thing," Durant said. "I've been in the league eight years. The media and myself have had a great relationship for eight years. And I said something, two days in a row I said something. Am I allowed to be upset one time? Am I allowed to be mad? Am I human? Do you look at me that way? Do you look at me as if I can't say nothing wrong? We had great communication for eight years, and it's still that way."

Durant, who has been highly regarded for his humble, mild-mannered demeanor with the media, has shown a more outspoken, edgier side this season.

"I had a moment," Durant said. "Everybody in life has moments. You had one for sure before, but it's not broadcasted like mine. I was more so trying to take up for my teammates, my coach and other guys in the league that gets scrutinized and I don't like. Maybe I should shut up about it. I had one moment. What made me more mad than anything I was told I bite the hand that feeds me. I don't know what that means. I really don't know what that means. I wish someone would explain it to me. But I don't remember none of you guys being there when I was 8 years old and putting in that work, the nights when I'm in here putting in that work in. So I don't really understand what that one means. But, hey, I gotta roll with it. That's a part of it. I was told I shouldn't cry 'cause everybody been through it. So I'm going to shut up."

Durant explained on Tuesday that his reaction was more a defense of his team and coach than anything else.

"It's more so just an attack on our team and our players and our coach and all that stuff," Durant said. "It's not going to fly with me. I really don't like it. I'm not going to sit here and agree with you when you're trying to bash my coach or one of my teammates or anything. That's just who I am as a person. Like I said, we had a great relationship. We still have a great relationship, myself and the media. I had a moment. I hope we can get past it. But I'm sure everybody has those types of moments."

"I'll try to work on just being honest with you guys but at the same time being more respectable. I made a mistake."

Also on Tuesday, a feature in GQ was published with Durant saying, "And as superstars, you gotta lead what you have. You gotta make them better. Some players might be better than others. Some teams might be better than others. You gotta do your job, and you gotta trust that the front office is going to do their job. It's hard, though. You know what I'm saying? Because it's like, s---, I want [to] win. Obviously our players aren't as good as, you know, than they were before. But you have to figure it out."

Asked what he meant by saying the Thunder's players aren't as good as they were before, Durant said he was misunderstood.

"I think my words were misinterpreted a little bit," he said. "I read that this morning and felt bad, but I was just talking in terms of how the public views our team, like how everybody views us. Everybody talks about the James Harden trade to this day. Obviously, in everybody else's eyes we don't have a player that's a three-time All-Star, leading scorer in the league, you know what I'm saying, so we can't do nothing about that but play. That's what I meant about it. I never wanted to slight my teammates or anybody here, but just from the outside looking in, that's how people view us. That we got worse. But we can't control that. That's what really I was trying to say, so I'm sorry if my words got misinterpreted, but I never want to slight my teammates."

Durant was asked directly whether he "resents the organization" for trading Harden.

"Do I resent the organization? Nah. Hell nah. Not at all," he said. "Let''s look at it this way: We won 60 games the year he was gone, we won 59 the next year. Had a few injuries, you never know what would have happened if that didn't happen. So not at all. Plus they signed me to a max deal."

Growing assumption is that those decisions from the Thunder could affect Durant's future with the organization as his pending free agency in 2016 nears. But he said he's unmoved by lasting implications of the Harden deal.

"None. None. None," Durant said of the impact of the Harden trade on his future. "We're still a good team. Still a good team. Let's be real now. We'd still be up there if we didn't have injuries. If I wasn't out, if Russ [Russell Westbrook] wasn't out, we'd be up there. So don't act like we a bad team, like we got worse. We had injuries. It's a part of the game and I understand that, we're not crying about it. But that's what happened. We lost Russell for a playoff series, we lost Serge [Ibaka] for a playoff series. Stuff like that happens, but to say all because we lost James we're not going to make it to the Finals. Everybody's going to nitpick, especially with the time winding down with that stuff and the summer coming up with me and all that, but I love where I'm at right now and I'm just trying to focus on that every single day."