Six feet nine inches of humility

Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma Thunder was named the NBA’s 2014 most valuable player, and gave a tearful shout-out to his Mom that has now become famous.

But what also impressed people who watched the whole speech was his humility.

“Jeremy, Perry, Andre, Steven, Reggie, Grant: You guys make me so much better without even knowing, man,” he said.

Here’s a guy who earned $35 million just last year, and there was no chest beating, no “We’re number one.” None of this – “I pulled myself up by my bootstraps, I made my own luck, I built all this with my own hands.”

He just quietly gave the credit to his teammates and his coaches.

“You took time out of your summers to come work with me,” said Durant. “You took time out of your nights to come work with me. And it’s something I’ve really appreciated. I never want to take you guys for granted.”

And then of course the part where he looked directly at his Mom. “You kept us off the street. When you didn’t eat, you made sure we ate. You went to sleep hungry. You’re the real MVP.”

And hearing this wealthy, successful man – who did indeed rise from nothing – telling his colleagues “I know that I am where I am today because of all of you,” – can you imagine if all successful people had that kind of humility, and expressed it once in a while? You think it might defuse the class war just a little bit?

Great speech, Kevin. My only complaint is, did you have to raise the bar for Mother’s Day quite so high?