{"id":717388,"date":"2026-04-25T01:45:50","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T01:45:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/717388\/"},"modified":"2026-04-25T01:45:50","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T01:45:50","slug":"fans-lose-it-over-rockets-stars-shocking-advice-for-kevin-durant-about-double-teaming-trap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/717388\/","title":{"rendered":"Fans Lose It Over Rockets Star\u2019s Shocking Advice For Kevin Durant About Double-Teaming Trap"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Houston Rockets<\/a> and Kevin Durant<\/a> have a tough task ahead of them with the Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> coming to town and looking to take a commanding 3-0 lead over them in their first round playoff series. As such, all eyes will be on Durant and how he\u2019ll respond after one of the worst halves of his NBA career.<\/p>\n

LeBron James<\/a> has dominated this series in his own ways, but the Lakers have gotten masterful, timely performances from Luke Kennard<\/a> (27 points in Game 1) and Marcus Smart<\/a> (25 points in Game 2).<\/p>\n

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Meanwhile, Kevin Durant only played in Game 2 and while he finished with a strong line in the contest, he had one of the worst halves that directly led to the second consecutive loss of the Rockets.<\/p>\n

The two-time NBA champion finished Game 2 with 23 points, six rebounds, and four assists while shooting 7-of-12 from the field. But he also had a career-high tying nine turnovers in the game, scoring just three points with five turnovers in the entire second half.<\/p>\n

This was as the Lakers repeatedly used a strategy of sending double-teams at him, testing his decision-making while forcing his Houston teammates to try and beat them.<\/p>\n

But ahead of Game 3, Rockets forward Jabari Smith<\/a> Jr. was asked how the team can help Durant get more involved offensively as he sees more and more double-teaming in the half-court. However, Smith\u2019s response about his teammate\u2019s travails was quite a bit surprising.<\/p>\n

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Jabari Smith Jr. Drops Shocking Advice For Durant\u2019s Double-Teaming Trap<\/p>\n

Responding to reporters who asked him about what could be done to assist Kevin Durant in light of the double-teams he\u2019s facing, Smith Jr. said:<\/p>\n

\u201cThey try to stop him and the other guys gotta be aggressive, so we have to be aggressive out of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got to make the right reads out of it, make the right decisions. And it\u2019s on him to find ways to get himself involved and get to his spots without the double team.\u201d<\/p>\n

But then, Jabari Smith Jr. appeared to essentially tell Durant to figure out a solution himself, leading fans to lose their minds on social media.<\/p>\n

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\u201cJust because he\u2019s getting double teamed, we still need him to be KD, you know? There\u2019s still ways around it, and we got some fixes to [the trapping of Durant], and we\u2019re gonna be better the next two games,\u201d Smith Jr. added.<\/p>\n

Basketball fans react to Smith Jr.\u2019s KD advice<\/p>\n

His statements sparked tons of reactions from fans, with many quickly recalling the Durant chats talking about Jabari Smith lately.<\/p>\n

\u201cKevin Durant you were right man,\u201d one fan said with a crying emoji and a screenshot of the Durant burner account DM\u2019s that surfaced over the NBA All-Star break.<\/p>\n

\u201cKD heard Jabari call him out like this & all the sudden an ankle injury appeared outta thin air lmaoo bro said if this how you feel, then I\u2019m leaving y\u2019all boys out there to die \ud83e\udd23,\u201d another fan added.<\/p>\n

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Reactions varied widely, with some people of the opinion that KD can\u2019t be blamed when his teammates are missing in action.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot sure why Kevin Durant is the problem when his teammates can\u2019t ever catch the ball,\u201d NBA reporter Brett Siegel chipped in.<\/p>\n

\u201cMake the open shot brother. F**k everything else,\u201d one fan commented.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat team\u2019s chemistry is worse than the Lakers\u2019 in 2004 haha,\u201d wrote another fan.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese guys chemistry in the gutter\u201d, another fan added.<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how Kevin Durant<\/a> finds a solution to evade these double-teams. Game 3 is set for Friday night at 5PM PST, and it\u2019ll be the Rockets\u2019 last stand before the series is all but over.<\/p>\n

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