CJ McCollum not taking motivation from Kevin Durant's offseason dig

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SAN FRANCISCO -- Last summer, during an appearance on CJ McCollum's "Pull Up podcast," Kevin Durant told the Trail Blazers star guard that Portland "wasn't going to win a championship" and not to "worry about what goes on at the top of things."

McCollum told the two-time reigning NBA Finals MVP that the Blazers would meet the Warriors at the top.

Here we are.

On Sunday, McCollum scored 37 points in the Blazers' Game 7 win over the Denver Nuggets to set up a date with the Dubs in the Western Conference finals.

So, how does McCollum feel about Durant's dig at the Blazers 10 months later?

"Past is the past man," McCollum said Monday at his Western Conference finals media availability. "I think it's funny. Obviously, you don't think that's going to be relevant at the time. You know, when it's summertime and you're in a hotel room joking around, and then it happens. It's a nice soundbite. I hope you're subscribing to my podcast. You know what I'm saying? If you're going to use the soundbite, I hope you actually subscribe to the Pull Up podcast. But hey, that's dumb. Don't nobody get no extra motivation for the Western Conference finals. If you need to listen to some stuff then you got some serious issues."

Durant (right calf strain) reportedly will miss Game 1 of the series and is "unlikely" to play in Game 2. If McCollum and the Blazers can get one of the first two games at Oracle Arena, it could force the Dubs to tense up and try and get Durant back sooner than expected. 

[RELATED: Get ready for fireworks in Warriors-Blazers West finals]

The Blazers went 2-2 against the Warriors this season, including a win at Oracle Arena. Damian Lillard, McCollum and the Blazers won't be scared of the two-time defending champions, especially given the odds they've faced to get to their first conference finals in 19 seasons. 

McCollum said he would meet KD at the top and he did.

No matter what happens next, Durant's next appearance on the "Pull Up podcast" should be something. 

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