Suns' Kevin Durant Named Fourth-Best in NBA by Retired Player Survey

Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant is highly regarded as one of the best players to ever play the game.

His size and ability to score at almost every block of hardwood on the court makes him an ultra-rare commodity that NBA teams have yet to figure out since entering the league in the late 2000's.

Durant's abilities are rare enough to pin alongside some of the all-time greats and players of the past.

Many players who played in previous generations believe so.

In a recent poll conducted on over 100 past NBA players by The Athletic, Durant was voted as the fourth-best player in the league right now, falling behind LeBron James (28.1% of votes), Nikola Jokic (21.2%) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (21%).

Durant received 11.8% of votes on the survey.

"Last season, Durant topped the retired players’ vote totals in this category by a substantial margin, getting nearly half (44 percent) of the vote," said The Athletic.

"But KD’s injuries since our last survey 16 months ago and subsequent games lost seem to have reduced his standing. It’s not that James has a higher share of the vote than before; it’s just that KD’s support has apparently splintered into multiple pieces, while LeBron’s has essentially stayed the same (31 percent then, 28 percent now)."

Durant hasn't played since early January with a MCL sprain but is expected to make his debut on Wednesday against the Charlotte Hornets.

Other vote-getters were Stephen Curry (6.6%). Luka Dončić (6.6%) and Kyrie Irving (2.2%).