AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -Kevin Durant spent only one season at Texas. That’s all it took for him to carve a permanent place in Longhorn lore.
Durant’s No. 35 was retired Wednesday night, raised to the rafters of the Erwin Center to hang alongside the jerseys of T.J. Ford (11) and Slater Martin (15) as the only Longhorns so honored.
Durant swept the national player of the year awards as a freshman in 2006-07 when he scored 20 or more points 30 times and scored at least 30 in 11 games. He led the Big 12 in scoring (25.8), rebounding (11.1) and blocked shots (67) before leaving for the NBA. Now in his second season with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Durant ranks fourth in the league in scoring at 26.3 points per game.
Durant was honored with a halftime ceremony in No. 25 Texas’ game against Texas Tech. He was greeted with a standing ovation as the crowd watched highlights from his one season with the Longhorns and got teary-eyed when his jersey was unveiled high above the court.
aid. “Even though I live in Oklahoma and a land full of Sooners, every time I step out of the house, I let them know I’m a Longhorn for life.”
Like Durant, Ford’s time at Texas was short. He played only two seasons from 2001-2003 but won the Naismith and Wooden national player of the year awards when he led the Longhorns to the Final Four in 2003. Ford’s jersey was retired in 2004.
Slater, who played in 1944 and from 1947-1949, is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. His jersey was retired earlier this season.
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