What if Kevin Durant’s foot wasn’t over the line?

This was during the 2021 NBA playoffs. Due to COVID-19, the season had been shortened from the usual 82 games to 72 games. The playoffs extended well into July and it was a very chaotic year. The Miluakee Bucks were the NBA champions, but they were almost stopped by one formidable opponent: the Big 3 Brooklyn Nets. And it is more specifically one play that we will focus on.

6.0 seconds left in the Game 7, Milwaukee is up by 2.

1.6 seconds left, Kevin Durant shoots a three, it's good! Milwaukee down by 1 with 1.6 seconds to go!

Oh, they’re reviewing it. Official call: Kevin Durant makes 24-foot two point shot

Ok, so it’s a tie game here!

Giannis Antetokounmpo takes the last shot, no good!

We’re headed to overtime here in Barclay’s Center!

Soon, after overtime had finished, the Bucks beat the Nets 115 - 111, advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals and eventually becoming the NBA champions.

But, what would have happened if Kevin Durant didn’t have his foot over the line? We’ll dive into that here.

Possibility #1: The Brooklyn Nets would have been the NBA champions. The big 3 would have been deemed a success and this would have really changed the way that the league approached big 3’s in the future. More importantly, the Nets would have committed long term money to all 3 of those stars, and that might have gone bad. But, they would have gotten their long desired first title.

Possibility #2: The Phoenix Suns would have been the NBA champions. I think the only difference in this scenario would be that championship ring. I still think CP3 would have eventually been traded and they still could have gotten KD. But, one clear difference could be Deandre Ayton’s relationship with Monty Williams. That would likely have been different if they won a ring together.

Possibility #3: The Milwaukee Bucks would have blown it up sooner. They have been having less and less success every year, so without that one ring, Giannis would have likely already demanded a trade. This would have resulted in him going to a different team, which changes literally everything in the league. The Bucks could have been the 15th seed in the East this year. Giannis could be on any team, and that team would be dominant.