One of the prize additions of this summer’s free agency frenzy and perhaps the most unstoppable offensive player in the league today, it was no secret that Kevin Durant was expected to attract a number of suitors this past offseason.
Durant was expected to weigh a number of different options, with teams such as the Knicks being pinned as likely destinations. Though the rumors around Durant and the Knicks had been swirling for a while now, Durant says though he thought about joining them briefly, he was never seriously considering the Knicks.
“I thought about it, yeah, just a thought,” Durant said during his appearance on the Ebro in the Morning Show on Hot 97. “But I didn’t really do any full analysis on the Knicks.”
“I think a lot of fans look at the Knicks as a brand and expect these younger players in their lifetime don’t remember the Knicks being good,” Durant said. “I’ve seen the Knicks in the (NBA) Finals, but kids coming up after me didn’t see that. So that whole brand of the Knicks is not as cool as let’s say the Golden State Warriors, or even the (Los Angeles) Lakers or the Nets now. You know what I’m saying: the cool thing now is not the Knicks.”
Though Durant’s comments may have rubbed some Knicks fans the wrong way, there’s no doubt that what KD has to say is 100% correct. This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise either considering Durant has already said the only team he was going to leave Golden State for was the Brooklyn Nets.
For the Knicks, while they currently remain one of the NBA’s most historically storied franchises, there’s no doubt they’ve lost a lot of their allure from the 1980s and 90s.
It simply comes down to success and winning titles, and that’s something the Knicks haven’t enjoyed for a long time. Kevin Durant cited teams such as the Warriors and Lakers as two of the more popular teams now and it’s easy to see why. Both the Warriors and Lakers have enjoyed dynasties within the past two decades while the Knicks continue to fade more and more into irrelevancy.
New York has yet to make the playoffs since the 2013 season and have advanced to the postseason four times in the past 19 years. If the Knicks want to continue to be in the running for players and stars of Durant’s caliber, the culture needs to shift fast and there needs to be some glimmer of hope towards the future. If New York remains the same incompetent team as it has been for nearly two decades now, the chances of them landing a big-name free agent remain almost nonexistent.
