Wanda Durant had been waiting for her son’s entire life for this moment — and he had too.
Kevin Durant’s mom got plenty of spotlight on Monday after Durant took charge in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, helping the Golden State Warriors put away the Cleveland Cavaliers and win their second title in three years — the first for Durant. As soon as the clock hit all zeroes, streamers fell from the rafters and Kevin Durant made his way over to his mother for a hug.
As he waited for a postgame interview, Wanda Durant embraced her son and tugged at his face, saying “You did it” to him.
“Don’t matter what nobody say, you did it,” Wanda said as she hugged her son. “I love you baby.”
It was a long road for Kevin Durant, who famously fell short year in and year out while carrying the Oklahoma City Thunder. Durant made the controversial decision to join the Warriors in the offseason, and it paid off as he helped lead the team to a 16-1 playoff record while earning NBA Finals MVP honors.
Kevin Durant had apparently been waiting much longer. During his post-game acceptance speech, Kevin pointed to his mother and told her, “We did it. I told you when I was eight-years-old.”
Kevin Durant looks at his Mother Wanda and says “We did it.I told you when I was 8 years old” pic.twitter.com/0WqPlWJFLC
— ? ??????? ?? ? (@_MarcusD2_) June 13, 2017
The moment seemed to be savored as much by Wanda Durant as it was by her son. Cameras caught Kevin Durant’s mother crying tears of joy, just as Kevin famously did when talking about his mother during his 2014 NBA MVP acceptance speech. During that speech, Durant welled up with tears as he recounted the sacrifices his mother made when he was a child.
Wanda Durant is so proud of her son ?? pic.twitter.com/KNtZdZDcZf
— SB Nation (@SBNation) June 13, 2017
Wanda Durant has actually been getting quite a bit of screen time throughout the NBA Finals. After Game 3, when the Warriors dismantled the Cavaliers to take a stranglehold 3-0 lead on the series, Wanda shared a hug with Steph Curry’s mother after the game.
“They tried to give it to them, but they wouldn’t take it! That’s what happened! They wouldn’t take it!” Wanda said (via USA Today ‘s For The Win ).
And after the Warriors closed out the series on Monday, Wanda Durant had another touching moment with NBA legend Jerry West, with the two sharing a hug.
Nice conversation/hug between Jerry West and Wanda Durant post-title pic.twitter.com/NThkpgL3VY
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) June 13, 2017
This is a new high for Wanda Durant after heartbreak in the only other time Kevin Durant reached the NBA Finals. After the Thunder lost to the LeBron James-led Miami Heat in the 2012 NBA Finals, Durant found his mother in the locker room after the final game and the two shared a tear-filled hug. This year, they were tears of joy.
[Featured Image by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images]
