Entering Sunday’s NFC Championship against the Seattle Seahawks, Los Angeles Rams cornerback Cobie Durant is just two wins away from hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
With Durant and the Rams playing on a massive stage, many fans are wondering if he’s related to another star athlete: Houston Rockets superstar Kevin Durant.
Cobie Durant’s Real Pro-Athlete Relative
Cobie is not related to the NBA legend, despite Kevin’s playful 2022 tweet referring to the Rams cornerback as his relative: “Somehow this is my cousin. Ima rams fan now”
The Rams’ social media team leaned into it, and Cobie responded with a shark emoji and the word “sniper.” However, this was just a joke; they aren’t actually related.
However, Cobie does have a fellow professional athlete in his family.
Durant’s football lineage traces to his cousin Michael Hamlin, a safety who starred at Lamar High School and Clemson before the Dallas Cowboys selected him in the fifth round of the 2009 NFL Draft. Hamlin spent time with the Cowboys and Jaguars before transitioning to coaching. His brothers, Markee and Marquais, played safety at South Carolina State, the same program where Cobie walked on after attending prep school.
That walk-on became MEAC Defensive Player of the Year by 2021. Durant intercepted Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei twice that fall, then helped South Carolina State win the Celebration Bowl. Four months later, the Rams made him a fourth-round pick.
Now, Durant has three interceptions through two playoff games, tied for the most in a single postseason in the last two decades. He picked off Bryce Young in the Wild Card round, then grabbed two off Caleb Williams in the Divisional Round. His ball skills have been huge for the Rams.
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In June 2025, the NFLPA named Durant the Black College Football Pro Player of the Year, recognizing his emergence as the best NFL player from an HBCU. He became the first Rams player since fellow HBCU alum Aeneas Williams in 2002 to record two interceptions in a playoff game.
The Rams feature story on Durant this week noted what might be the most fitting detail: his name shares phonetic roots with two of the most clutch performers in NBA history. His full name, Decobie, contains “Cobie,” which sounds like Kobe. His surname is Durant.
Durant told the Rams website his approach hasn’t changed regardless of the stage.
“I ain’t got to do nothing else, nothing less, man,” Durant said. “Just be myself, be Cobie Durant.”
The NFC Championship marks his sixth career playoff game. He has four interceptions through his first five postseason contests. Durant has already picked off Seahawks QB Sam Darnold twice in their matchups, once in the 2024 Wild Card round and once in Week 11 of the 2025 regular season.
While he’s not related to KD, they do seem to share the same clutch gene.
