I've never met Kevin Durant. The closest I've come to the man himself is watching him tutor -- and compete against -- high school kids at this summer's Nike Skills Camp in Chicago. That was pretty awesome.

But you don't have to be close to Durant to realize that he's pretty awesome in general, both on the court and off it. He's a famously humble hard worker, he plays for one of the youngest and most exciting teams in the league, and he's a sublime pleasure to watch (even if you're watching him work out against 17-year-olds). If I hadn't already given my NBA heart entirely to Derrick Rose, Durant would be a big-time man-crush contender. Given his popularity among NBA fans, I'm obviously not alone.

It's no surprise, then, that those closest to Durant during his brilliant one-year stop at Texas apparently agree. Today's proof comes via Jeff Goodman, who found out that Texas assistant coach Russell Springmann decided to honor the former Texas star by naming his son -- yes -- Durant Springmann:

Springmann was watching his most famous recruit, Kevin Durant, play with the Oklahoma City Thunder one day shortly after his wife was pregnant. "I said I really like the name Durant," Springmann said. "And she jumped on board and never got off." But Springmann, who was the one who recruited Durant to Texas, wanted to make sure he cleared it through the proper channels first. He called Durant’s parents and then made sure Kevin was alright with it, also. "They were cool with it," Springmann said. "And so was Kevin. We figured we couldn’t name our son after anyone better. Kevin’s everything we’d want our son to be."

First of all, "Durant Springmann" is a great name. It's also a great basketball name, the kind that practically guarantees some measure of hoops success in the future. Throw in the Springmann basketball bloodlines and the Durantian mojo, and I'll expect young Durant to make a handful of all-name teams in 20 years or so. No pressure, son.