With the start of free agency right around the corner, six days to be exact, details surrounding the league-wide pursuit of Kevin Durant are beginning to emerge.
Kevin Durant, widely regarded as the most coveted free agent available this summer, will attend free agent meetings with the Thunder, Warriors, and Spurs, sources told ESPN’s Marc Stein:
The Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs and incumbent Oklahoma City Thunder are the first three known teams to secure face-to-face meetings with free agent-to-be Kevin Durant starting next weekend, according to league sources.
Sources told ESPN that the list of teams that get to pitch Durant directly will grow before NBA free agency officially begins July 1 at 12:01 a.m. ET, but the list of confirmed suitors for now features the Thunder and their two main rivals in the Western Conference.
With every team in the league excluding the NBA Champion Cleveland Cavaliers interested in Durant, you can expect other teams will soon join this mix in hopes of getting behind closed doors with Durant. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, Durant’s reps are already working to confirm other meetings with teams:
Durant’s representatives at Roc Nation are working to solidify invitations with the Boston Celtics, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs and Thunder, league sources said.
Other teams interested in Durant, such as the Nuggets, Knicks, Lakers, Rockets, and Wizards, are falling behind. These teams are currently considered as outsiders in the race, according to Wojnarowski. Still, the possibility of them eventually meeting with Durant always exists.
Kevin Durant is expected to host meetings in Los Angeles and New York, despite conflicting earlier reports.
As for the three teams already set to meet with Durant, they plan on giving it their all. The Spurs, who were eliminated by Durant’s Thunder in the second round, will bring Gregg Popovich, Tim Duncan, and others, according to Marc Stein. For the Warriors, their pitch will include its All-Star backcourt of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.
Durant, who averaged 28.2 points and 8.2 rebounds per game for the Thunder this season, will likely re-sign with the Thunder on a two-year deal, multiple reports have indicated. The second year would include a player option, meaning Durant could become a free agent next summer — alongside teammate Russell Westbrook.
Outside of Oklahoma City, the Warriors currently lead all rival groups in the race to sign Durant, according to Adrian Wojnarowski.
The more time moves on, the more teams get crossed off Durant’s list. Durant holds a vast power in his hands; The landscape of the NBA could change with one simple decision. The looming question, as always has been, stays the same: Where does he ultimately sign?
July 1st is getting closer, folks. Time is running out, and Durant knows that. But Kevin Durant will always be Kevin Durant, and in the end, he’ll make the decision that benefits both his family and himself the most.
Kevin Durant is expected to choose his destination before July 9th.
UPDATE (6/25/16):
Kevin Durant will also meet with the New York Knicks, the fourth confirmed team thus far, sources tell Thomas Dee:
#Breaking: Kevin Durant has informed the #Knicks organization he will meet with them, per sources.
— Tommy Dee (@ThomasCDee) June 25, 2016
#Knicks organization “very confident” they’ll “be in Durant’s final 3” and are “all-in” on signing the OKC forward. #NBA
— Tommy Dee (@ThomasCDee) June 25, 2016
