As the Kevin Durant free agency speculation continues, the latest piece of popular insight comes from New Orleans Pelicans television broadcaster Joel Meyers, who appeared on SiriusXM NBA Radio on Monday and weighed in on the likelihood of Durant leaving Oklahoma City this summer.
(transcribed by Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman):
I made some calls over the weekend, Vinny. If they don’t, I’m told if they don’t at least get to the NBA Finals, Durant’s gone. Simple as that. And to the point where he may want his own team. So everybody’s talking about Golden State. There may be other teams coming into the equation for Kevin Durant. He’s the principle. He’s going to be the guy. So from what I’ve been told, it may not be Golden State after all. Everybody thought it was, like, ‘Well, maybe he can slide in there, and they won’t match whoever makes an offer to Harrison Barnes. So it frees up that cap space that they would have given to Harrison Barnes.’ But the calls I took, and some of the people I talked to over the weekend being in the building, it’s not such a deadlock. As much as we all love Kevin Durant with Russell Westbrook, watch it now, because there’s a real strong possibility it’s their last season together in OKC.
This is part of common speculation — if the Oklahoma City Thunder don’t make a significant postseason run, Durant’s chances of signing elsewhere in free agency will likely increase. Meyers does offer something new to consider, though, in that if Durant leaves he’s going somewhere to be the focal point. The potential of Durant joining the Golden State Warriors has been discussed as of late, but according to what Meyers is hearing, that wouldn’t be likely.
Durant is used to being in the postseason and contending, so he’s not just going anywhere to be ‘the man’ and abandon any ambition of becoming a champion. There have been up to seven teams reported to be suitors for Durant this summer, including the Wizards, Rockets, and Heat. It’s hard to say Durant wouldn’t be the focal point on any team he goes to, but the question for him becomes about fit, feel, and functionality. We can all agree that Durant having to make that evaluation largely depends on how his current team finishes the season.
