Kevin Durant Sued Over Nickname
Needs A New Nickname Anyway
It hasn’t exactly been a good week for Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder who are one game from losing the NBA Finals.Now Durant has been hit with the news that he’s being sued for using and profiting off the nickname “Durantula” originally belonging to a guitarist.
Durant was sued Wednesday in Federal Court by Mark Durante, a guitarist who, according to the lawsuit was a big deal in the 80s having played with Public Enemy, The Aliens, The Next Big Thing, and The Revolting Cocks.
TMZ obtained a copy of the lawsuit, in which Durante says he adopted the name “Durantula” for his “on-stage and performance persona” and has used it to market “music, recordings, apparel, t-shirts, guitars, and related merchandise.”
Meanwhile, sports fans have adopted the handle for the Oklahoma City Thunder star and current NBA scoring champ.
Durante claims he sent Durant’s people a couple letters “demanding they stop using the nickname.”
In the suit though, Durante claims Nike has used the moniker to launch a shoe campaign and he claims KD himself signed “Durantula” on basketballs that are for sale through his website.
The guitarist claims he registered the “Durantula” trademark. He’s suing for damages and an injunction stopping KD from using the name.
