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Lil B Talks Kevin Durant, Curses, and Moms

Lil B on meeting Kevin Durant's mom, Wanda: "I did get a lil' nervous because the moms don't play. They don't play."
Twitter/@LILBTHEBASEDGOD

When Kevin Durant decided last summer to leave the Oklahoma City Thunder and sign with the Golden State Warriors, he instantly drew the wrath of fans angered by the news. But Durant's biggest hater, Lil B, had the opposite reaction.

The Bay Area rapper has been at Durant's throat for years, ever since the All-Star forward casually criticized his music in a tweet in 2011. In response, Lil B challenged Durant to a game of one-on-one. Durant played along for a little bit but quickly stopped responding to Lil B on Twitter, which only angered the rapper more.

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So Lil B did what any rational person would do. He put a curse on Durant.

OK, Lil B didn't actually curse Durant. His alter ego, The BasedGod, did.

And while this all sounds ridiculous, especially since a mythical positive being named The BasedGod is involved, for a time the curse actually seemed to work.

Durant did not win a title while he was cursed by The BasedGod. He did lead the Thunder to the Finals in 2012, but they lost to the Miami Heat. The closest Durant came to winning a title again was in the 2016 playoffs, but the Thunder gave up a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference Finals and lost to the Warriors.

Since Lil B hails from the Bay Area and is a die-hard Warriors fan, once Durant decided to come to Golden State the curse was automatically lifted. And like magic, Durant won his first NBA championship on Monday and took home the Finals MVP, as well.

You may view Lil B with some skepticism—after, all Durant never did play that game of one-on-one and the BasedGod only lifted the curse because he came to the Warriors. But Lil B doesn't see it like that. For him, this was all just part of Durant's destiny and proof of the influence The BasedGod had on the All-Star's career. It also is what Lil B believes in, as his whole being is based around positivity and respect.

Wanting to get Lil B's feelings about Durant leading the Warriors to their second title in three years, VICE Sports had a quick phone conversation with the rapper, who has been busy working on his first official mixtape, Black Ken, which will be released later this summer.

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(This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.)

VICE Sports: What was your initial reaction after the Warriors won the championship? Did you feel proud for Durant?

Lil B: Oh man, so excited. It was a huge season and huge Finals win for the Warriors. I'm just really excited for the NBA and the Warriors organization. A lot of history was made by the Warriors in the last couple of years and to see Kevin Durant get his first title was so amazing. Him leaving his last team to get a championship, it was just groundbreaking for me.

VS: Does Durant winning his first title and The BasedGod curse being lifted go hand-in-hand?

Lil B: Well, you see what happens. The curse is lifted and automatically he wins a championship and gets the Finals MVP.

Now you got to be on the lookout to see what will happen with James Harden. He was cursed last year and look at what happened to him. He fought through the curse but it wasn't lifted. Now let's see what Harden does next year.

Lil B cursed Harden for using the rapper's cooking dance as a celebration without proper credit. He recently lifted Harden's curse while appearing on ESPN's First Take.

VS: So is Harden going to do the same as Durant and win a championship next year?

Lil B: He will be free. You see how far he got with the curse on him this year. So without the curse, there is no telling how far James Harden can go.

VS: Durant has a lot of haters due to his decision to join a star-studded Warriors team. What's your take on Durant's decision?

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Lil B: He made a smart business decision. I think he made a smart decision overall. He got Finals MVP so he did add a lot to the Warriors. He's a scoring monster. People need to accept his decision to come to the Warriors. It's great for basketball and they play great team ball.

VS: When you were on First Take, you got to meet Durant's mom, Wanda. How was that experience?

Lil B: It was really humbling. I paid my respects to her and also told her to send my respects to Kevin Durant. Also, I was just letting her know it's still all respect and love, regardless. She did say, "Now hold on. Are you the one that cursed my baby?" But I got so much respect for Kevin Durant's mom and so much love for them both.

VS: Was there any awkwardness between you two because of The BasedGod's curse?

Lil B: Nothing awkward, but it was crazy 'cause right when I pulled up, she pulled up at the same time. And then someone said, "There goes KD's mom." So I did get a lil' nervous because the moms don't play. They don't play. It was a blessing, though. She was very comforting, very warm, and just a very positive, genuine soul.

VS: Jeff Van Gundy said that the Warriors will win the next eight or ten championships. Can you see that happening as well?

Lil B: Time will tell. We're in a good space right now. No telling how many are coming. Jeff knows the game, though, so I wouldn't put it past the Warriors.

VS: How's your own individual basketball game coming along these days? You still putting in a lot of work?

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Lil B: Yeah, my game has been improving. It's been some years since I uploaded some videos of my game but it has grown a lot. My three-point shot has gotten better. I'm still trying to improve my ball-handling, especially with my left hand. Things are going really good, though, so I'm excited to showcase my skills soon at one of these celebrity games or tournaments.

VS: You need to play in the NBA Celebrity Game at All-Star weekend.

Lil B: Oh yeah. Oh yeah. That's a must.

VS: What would you say if you met Durant in person?

Lil B: I would tell him how much I respect him and that I really want to play him in a game of basketball. He has his championship now, so it's time to play.