Steph Curry responds to Kevin Durant's belief Warriors didn't accept him

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Over the past three seasons, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant and the Warriors enjoyed an unprecedented run of success.

The Warriors won two NBA titles and were injuries to Durant and Klay Thompson away from three-peating. The Dubs went 16-1 in the 2017 NBA playoffs and there was no ceiling to what they could accomplish with a core of Durant, Curry, Thompson and Draymond Green.

But Durant chose to take his talents to Brooklyn this summer, signing with the Nets to play alongside his friend Kyrie Irving and hopefully lead a team that truly is his.

Durant later explained his decision to the Wall Street Journal, noting he never felt accepted as a member of the Warriors. Curry, Thompson and Green all are homegrown talents and he never felt he had the same cache as those three and Andre Iguodala.

For Curry, who counts Durant as one of his good friends, that was difficult to hear.

"I mean, that's tough," Curry told ESPN's Rachel Nichols about Durant's comments. "There's so many narratives that go on, especially when you're at the top of the league. No matter how, you know, the full transition happens to Brooklyn, him separating himself from the Warriors -- that's gonna happen. I think he knows, you know, what we were about as teammates, what we were about as friends on and off the court. And again, nobody is gonna take away the accomplishments we had. But at the end of the day, whatever he, you know, needed to do to make that decision and however he wants to explain that -- that's just what's gonna happen."

As for Durant's decision to leave, Curry holds no ill will toward the two-time NBA Finals MVP.

"At the end of the day, we live in an age where choice at the forefront, and K, you know, made a decision for himself and you can't argue that," Curry said. "I wish we could still play with K. He's an unbelievable talent, unbelievable person. We accomplished a lot together. But -- you know, things have changed a little bit. So you obviously wish him the best, obviously with his recovery first and foremost and things on and off the court. But we're gonna have to battle down the road. So this should be a fun, new experience on that front, too."

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Durant ruptured his Achilles in Game 5 of the NBA Finals and likely will miss the upcoming season. Warriors owner Joe Lacob already has stated he plans to retire Durant's No. 35 to honor the accomplishments and historic nature of the era of Warriors basketball.

Whenever KD makes his return to the Bay, he's sure to get a rousing ovation from the fans and some love from Curry, who always accepted him as a co-star of one of the most impressive runs in NBA history.

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