The Big Lead

Kevin Durant helps NBA parody account make Merriam-Webster Dictionary

By Joe Lago

Oct 6, 2024; Palm Desert, California, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant (35) high fives with teams after subbing out against the Los Angeles Lakers during the first half at Acrisure Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Frerker-Imagn Images
Oct 6, 2024; Palm Desert, California, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant (35) high fives with teams after subbing out against the Los Angeles Lakers during the first half at Acrisure Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Frerker-Imagn Images / David Frerker-Imagn Images
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NBA Twitter can be a wonderful thing for basketball fans, but it also can be deceiving. Parody accounts can trick avid news seekers into believing a satirical story is real.

Case in point: The aggregation of a supposed "ESPNNBA" story about Kevin Durant's explanation for remaining single.

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The Phoenix Suns and Team USA star is quoted with the following explanation: "Still rolling solo because I'm not dealing with the headache of debating ball with a woman who can't name my MVP year or break down a pick-and-roll."

NBA Twitter veterans know by now to always check the source. NBA Central is a popular news aggregator with 1.7 million followers on X, while NBA Centel is a parody account with over 130,000 followers. If you fall for the latter, you have been "Centel'd."

Durant appropriately pointed out that a commenter had become the latest NBA Centel victim. "You got centel'd," he tweeted to the critic who called Durant "so unpalatable" for a relationship.

Durant's response helped "Centel'd" gain official acceptance in the English language. Merriam-Webster Dictionary tweeted that it has included the term as a verb.

Yes, it was the actual Merriam-Webster Dictionary. The blue check mark confirmed it.

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