More on Kevin Durant Free Agency
Julian Benbow: Andre Iguodala: “Now that we got KD, I can say it: They were the best team last year in the playoffs.” Chuckle. https://t.co/uBy2wUSguB
The first day, though, was not easy. At his introductory press conference, Durant sat stiffly atop the dais, bracing for the inevitable queries about shortcuts to titles. When Kerr suggested he might bring his shiny new acquisition off the bench, everybody laughed except Durant, causing the coach to clarify. “I’m joking,” he said. Eventually, Durant warmed up. “We live in this superhero comic book world,” he said, “where you’re either a villain or you’re a superhero…I trusted my gut. I trusted my instincts. It’s the unpopular decision. But I can live with it.” From the Philippines, where Canada participated in an Olympic qualifying tournament, Nash downplayed his friend’s quest for NBA gold. “I think it was as much a personal move for his happiness and development as it was to win,” Nash told reporters.
Knicks general manager Steve Mills said his club didn’t meet Kevin Durant’s criterion as a team on the verge of an NBA championship, but indicated they would have been more eager for a Hamptons meeting with Durant had they thought he would be a free agent again next season. Team president Phil Jackson indicated similarly last week that a free-agent meeting with Durant (who signed with the Warriors on two-year deal with a player option after one) was more about building a relationship for “next time.’’
“It’s what the NBA has turned out to be,’’ Jackson said. ”That’s the way it’s going to be for a while — players allowed this to go forward instead of smoothing it, so there’s tons of money. There’s an opportunity to do major moves in the NBA. It’s very interesting, compelling team that Golden State has put together. It doesn’t guarantee a championship but does guarantee they’ll be watched and very competent.” Jeff Hornacek added: “If he wasn’t going to the Knicks, staying out West was fine by me.’’
Ian Begley: Here's Knicks GM Steve Mills on the club not getting a free agent meeting with Kevin Durant: "We knew that KD wanted to go to a team that he felt like had a chance to win the championship this upcoming season and we didn't fit that bill. But we know that if he had made a decision to do a one and one (with OKC) that we would have a meeting with him because then we would have been one of those teams he would think about for the following year," Mills said. ".... When he made the decision to go to Golden State...my assumption is that he would stay there."
Executives who saw Durant over the weekend, in the mansion off the beach, say he looked drained. He was sitting through as many as six hours of meetings per day, while simultaneously hearing from the Warriors, whose pitch never really ended. Iguodala told Durant he’d have the time of his life in Golden State. Curry insisted he’d be embraced immediately. The Warriors’ incumbent star swore he didn’t care about billboards or shoe sales. He just wanted banners. Durant, already seduced by the Dubs’ rollicking offensive system, was sold.
When nine Thunder officials visited Durant on Sunday afternoon, hoping for the last word, they realized they were too late. Durant woke up July 4 at 7 a.m. with his decision made. Informing Oklahoma City general manager Sam Presti, Durant said, was the hardest thing he’s ever done. Calling Myers was even a struggle. “I just want to say you guys are a great first-class organization,” he told the Warriors GM. “It was great getting to know you….but.”
This will affect teams' planning for 2017 free agency -- specifically the Warriors. Kevin Durant is signing a contract Thursday that will allow him to re-enter the market as a free agent next summer. Because the Warriors will not have his full rights at that time, they will have to create $33.5 million in cap space if Durant wants a new max contract.
What was your reaction to Durant choosing Warriors? Stephen Curry: Big time move by a big time person. A lot of people are going to have something to say about it. Obviously, it was a tough decision for him because of how he felt about Oklahoma City. It mattered a lot to him. But that just shows you what kind of character he has.
How did you pitch him? Stephen Curry: We were just ourselves. All we did was pretty much talk. We told him how things would be, how we operated and how he would fit in. He would fit right in. He’s a team guy. That’s who he really is. We told him he wouldn’t have to change anything and we wouldn’t have to change anything for him. He just fits right in. We just told him to do what is best for you. We wanted him, that’s why we were all there. But we wanted him to do what was best for him. At the ed of the day, he made a decision that he thought was best for him.
“We live in this superhero comic book world where either you’re a villain or you’re a superhero if you’re in this position, and I know that,” Durant said. “And I know I haven’t changed as a person. I don’t treat people any differently because I made the decision to play basketball in another city. I understand the fans in Oklahoma City and basketball fans around the world are, I guess, upset, but like I said, I made the decision based upon what I wanted to do and how I felt.”
Count Rockets forward Michael Beasley as someone who thinks Kevin Durant leaving the Thunder for the Warriors as a good decision. Beasley and Durant are childhood friends, growing up in the Maryland/Washington D.C. area. The two also played on the same AAU team. "I think it was an awesome decision for him," Beasley said Wednesday. "I think that was probably the coolest thing the sports world has seen in a long time. You get the best team and you always get the best player on the best team, it set the whole league on a tilt.
He still very much likes his club’s situation -- and rightly so -- but he is well aware of how much different things could have looked if Durant had gone Green. And, just like the Celtic citizenry, he has wondered whether he could have done anything that would have changed that decision. Could he have made a trade? Could he have acquired a key player that convinced Kevin Durant to sign here? “You know, I thought about that before and I’ve thought about that after, and I really don’t think so -- shy of a couple of moves that I couldn’t do,” Ainge told the Herald in a lengthy conversation this morning. “But in deals that we could have done that we refused to do, I don’t think that would have mattered for this. I think that KD really likes our players.” In other words, Ainge would have had to part with one or more core players that were part of the reason Durant was attracted to the Celtics in the first place.
The Celts did get Al Horford to agree to a free agent deal, a move the now-former Atlanta center delivered via Twitter after Ainge, Brad Stevens, ownership, a group of players and Tom Brady had met with Durant in the Hamptons earlier on Saturday. But Durant may have been ahead of the C’s on that news. “I got the impression that they knew something before we did,” said Ainge. “I know that they had some conversation. They were very familiar with what Horford was choosing between. It seemed to me in the presentation like Al and KD had been discussing their plans together.”
The Golden State Warriors have signed free agent forward Kevin Durant, the team announced today. Per team policy, terms of the agreement were not released. A six-time All-NBA Selection (five First Team, one Second Team) and four-time single-season scoring leader, Durant was named the league MVP in 2013-14, tallying a career-best and league-leading 32.0 points per game.
As you can see, CARMELO thinks many of these free agents are likely to underperform the dollar amount of the contracts they’ve agreed to. There’s a reason for this. Let’s use Kevin Durant as an example. Durant is harder to pin down than the average free agent. If he re-signs with the Oklahoma City Thunder, he could sign a five-year contract worth $153 million; if he signs with a different team, the most he could sign for is four years and $114 million — about $2 million less annually.2 But because of the way pay structure works in the NBA, Durant will have accrued enough “experience” in the league to jump up a tier in maximum pay after next season. That means both of those long-term figures could increase dramatically if Durant signs a two-year deal with an opt-out after the first year and then signs long-term next season.
J. Michael Falgoust: Scott Brooks tells @CSNMA on KD"s move to Golden State: "I'm happy if he's happy" #NBAFreeAgency
Marcus Thompson: Kevin Durant will sign his contract with the Warriors tomorrow ... for his full max
Marcus Thompson: Kevin Durant will sign his contract with the Warriors tomorrow ... Two-year deal at his full max with a player option ... as expected
Oklahoma City police have increased patrol near Kevin Durant’s Bricktown home. Police are concerned after videos were posted online showing someone putting a "For Sale" sign outside his home, and writing the word "coward" on it.
KD’s shoes used to be very popular at House of Hoops. Employees told News 9 that customers have been taking those shoes back. They’ve been returning them since news broke that KD is no longer going to be a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Reggie Miller: I like having stars/superstars in small markets. It evens the playing field and helps the overall product. It's why having Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay is great. In today's age of social media, you don't need to be in L.A., New York City or Chicago to get all the endorsements. Case in point: LeBron James and KD. Both have been the faces of the league in small markets.
Reggie Miller: But the media, of which I am a part, always says, "Well, he never won a championship." And I get that; I understand that. Not winning a championship burns me to this day. After reaching six Eastern Conference Finals and an NBA Finals only to finish without a title, I sympathize with Durant's dilemma. A rebound, loose ball, free throw, missed assignment, missed box-out can change everything. Being so close and ultimately losing sucks. Nevertheless, it was the fight to put Indiana on the map that, in my mind, is my greatest accomplishment.
Gilbert Arenas: Who ever thinks #Kevin is a coward for leaving #YourStupid...Media has FOOLED you for decades..they have made you believe that the best players and smartest are champions....if you didnt win a ring you're legacy is incomplete. #CBarkley #Ewing #Cwebb #A.I #ReggieM etc cant be the best of the best because they didnt win a ring BUT no one has EVER mentioned the (Business of Basketball) only 5 % of sports owners wanna win CHAMPIONSHIPS and will SPEND the money to do so. #Lakers #GS #spurs #Dallas #Miami #NYK then u have the (Lets just make the playoffs group
Gilbert Arenas: So how the hell is a players legacy Defined if the ppl who are making the decision AINT about winning BUT money...either win 10 rings and make (500 million) or NO rings and make (2 billion)??any player thats drafted to any team other then the ones i named YOU LEGACY is fucked...#Lebron realized after #DanGilbert bought that team for 500 million he wasnt spending any extra to put REAL (not old has beens)players around him to win SO he bounced to a owner who would spend to win..
Gilbert Arenas: NOW the media forced kevin to leave YES FORCED if he stayed and didnt win KNOWING they wasnt signing one free agent this summer to help them win then (he aint a GREAT) if he leaves to chase a ring then (Hes a coward) if he went to a bad team then (hes chasing money) he went into free agency with one foot on a banana pill and the other in a grave #NoGreatChoice
Durant wanted an offense that kept the ball moving and provided him easier scoring chances. The Thunder fired coach Scott Brooks and brought in Billy Donovan, and still the offense stalled out at key moments, often with Westbrook dribbling into oblivion. The Thunder led the NBA in blown fourth-quarter leads last season, according to Darnell Mayberry of NewsOK.com, despite their firepower. "Ultimately, he got frustrated and felt that they had plateaued," said a person with insight into Durant's thought process. "[Donovan] came in, and he still had the same issues that he had with Russ under Scotty. The offense didn't change much. He still had to take a ton of contested shots every game; and that's when he had the ball at all."
Privately, Durant was annoyed with a perceived media infatuation with the Warriors and Curry. He joked about how the Warriors were suddenly the "poster child" for the league. He expressed angst to friends about how the Warriors could seemingly do no wrong. He had come off a 2014-15 season from hell -- three surgeries on his foot in the wake of his triumphant MVP, an award he desperately wanted. He was supposed to be Curry -- the aw-shucks golden child who plowed his way through the league and dethroned LeBron James. Instead, he was in a boot watching Curry win an MVP and a championship.
The Mayor of Oklahoma City is concerned for Kevin Durant -- telling TMZ Sports he thinks KD got "bad advice" about leaving town ... adding, "I suspect it won't work out." We spoke with Mayor Mick Cornett -- a huge sports fan who also used to be a sports anchor -- who tells us he loves KD as a person, but believes the move to Golden State is a mistake. "Nothing in this is Kevin’s fault," Cornett says. "My only observation is ... I think he may have gotten bad advice and I suspect it won’t work out." "Now, I could be wrong but that’s what it feels like to me. I think he got bad advice.”
Q: From the human standpoint, Sam, before you even think about the roster and the future and the organization, how did this news hit you and where does it leave you? Sam Presti: “Well obviously disappointed, but also very respectful of the fact that Kevin had earned the right to make the best decision for himself. And I also think it’s an opportunity to reflect on what he was so integral in building. It’s very rare that a player essentially gets to found a franchise, and see it to the heights that we’ve been fortunate enough to achieve. Four out of six Western Conference Finals, a trip to the Finals, the fourth best record in professional sports over the past six seasons, with San Antonio, New England, and Green Bay. He was truly one of the founding fathers of the program, along with Russell and Nick Collison. So there’s disappointment that that chapter has ended, but also respect for his service and his commitment.
Presti: “Like I said before, it’s disappointing that his tenure with the organization has come to a close. But in his final season, and what I felt like was maybe his best season as a franchise we were 7-5 in the postseason against the Spurs and the Warriors. Offensively, we were incredibly successful against two of the better defenses in the league in back to back series. I think the outcome surely is disappointing, but the mettle and the spirit and the focus that that particular team showed throughout the season and into the postseason was one of the finer moments in the evolution of the organization – if not its finest moments, given the competition we were facing and the way we handled it with poise and composure and toughness.”
Q: Did you chat with him after Kevin’s decision? Presti: “Obviously (because Presti was) flying back from New York, I haven’t spoken with him. I’ve texted with him, and he and I have been in contact, as I have been with a lot of our players through this process. This is a group of people who have been through quite a bit together, so he and I will have our conversation, and reflect on it, but I would let Russell convey and express however he feels.”
Durant told the Warriors throughout the process that he liked their franchise more than any other. He told them he wanted to play with Curry & Co., and he loved Steve Kerr's system, and the Silicon Valley sensibilities of Joe Lacob's front office. But he always told the Warriors he wasn't sure if he could leave OKC because of everything that had been built there, and because of his loyalties to Westbrook and others.
In the end, the Warriors were the only team that really drew Durant's interest. His reps at Nike love the idea of him stationed in the San Francisco Bay Area, even playing with Under Armour's signature star, league sources said. Executives from another team that met with Durant said he spent most of the meeting silent and didn't ask any questions. Without the cap spike, the Warriors would have had to make more painful sacrifices to get in the conversation.
While Durant was said to have enjoyed the presence of the Patriots quarterback, he may have been more impressed with the chance to not just join a winner but be the major part in building one. “He’s told people for a while that he likes that whole Celtics thing and the tradition and the way the people there are into the team — all the teams up there,” said a league source. “But I still think he was looking out West. The part I don’t know is how much the Horford signing made him stop and think again about Boston, but I think it had to be some.”
Interestingly, some of the teams in the hunt were told that Durant was turned off by something he heard in the Warriors’ initial presentation. “They were telling him about how they were going to win championships even if he didn’t come there,” said a coach. “I don’t think they came right out and said he wasn’t going to win if he didn’t sign with them — that would be crazy — but I was told that’s how he kind of took it.”
Said another source, a call from Warriors exec Jerry West smoothed over any issues Durant may have had. “I think that was important,” he said. “I think Kevin was interested in Golden State big time as the playoffs went on, but if he had any doubts, I think hearing from someone of Jerry West’s stature was important. When Jerry talks, you listen. Some young guys may not get how big a deal Jerry West is, but Kevin is a bright guy and he’s into the history of the game. He knows what Jerry West is to basketball.
The Jerry West phone call really made a difference. “The Logo,” as the NBA legend/Warriors executive board member/part owner is informally known, had a phone conversation that lasted approximately 30 minutes with Durant on Saturday. The Warriors had asked Durant if he wanted to talk to West, and he obliged. And how’s this for unexpected? West never once told Durant that he should sign with the Warriors. Instead, in what was clearly a theme of Durant’s decision-making process, they discussed what was best for his growth and happiness as a player.
“We told him he didn’t have to change who he is. He doesn’t have to change how he plays. We will get him shots. If he shot 40 percent from 3-point line contested, how would he shoot wide open?” Green said.
According to a person who saw the text messages, Curry told Durant in a text message that he could care less about who is the face of the franchise, who gets the most recognition or who sells the most shoes (Curry is with Under Armor, Durant with Nike). The two-time NBA MVP also told Durant that if Durant won the MVP award again he would be in the front row of the press conference clapping for him. In closing, Curry’s message to Durant was that all he truly cared about was winning championships and he’d like to do that as his teammate.
Nick Friedell: Emotional day for OKC. Not to mention support staff within organization. Everybody coming to grips with the fact KD is actually leaving. Shock of decision isn't going to wear off for a long time. Former Thunder big man Serge Ibaka declined comment when asked about Durant's decision.
Austin Rivers: The western conference regular season and playoffs next year is going to be straight heavy competition!! Even more than last year. Excited
Wanda Durant: @KDTrey5 I love you son, I'm proud of you. CONGRATS. @okcthunder I will always love you all…ALWAYS
