Kevin Durant Free Agency: Knicks or Lakers Not a Sure Thing

Kevin Durant NBA free agency rumors knicks lakers

Getty LeBron James is expected to try to recruit Kevin Durant to sign with the LA Lakers.

For a less than 24 hour period, people wondered how Kevin Durant’s injury would impact his upcoming free agency. As many feared Durant tore his Achilles, some wondered if teams would still line up to sign Durant to a max contract. While the answer would have been yes, Durant’s strained calf does not appear to be as serious as some expected.

Regardless of the injury, there appears to be some optimism surrounding a potential return to Golden State next season for Durant. The Athletic’s Sam Amick reported that there are some small signs Durant has not ruled out re-signing with the Warriors.

Team officials and rival executives alike have been predicting Kevin Durant’s departure in free agency for months now – cue Jay-Z and Alicia Keys, “New York…concrete jungle where dreams are made of…” But there’s a recent sense in Warriors circles that maybe he’ll think twice about joining them on this trek across the Bay Bridge, that this recent stretch of domination and fan appreciation might be the kind of thing that convinces him to – cue LeBron James’ personal motto that hasn’t exactly panned out in Laker Land – RWTW (Roll With The Winners).

For Warriors fans, there is nothing too small when it comes to finding signs Durant could stay. Amick cited Durant’s manager Rich Kleiman, an avid Knicks fan, wearing a Golden State shirt as potentially a good sign for the Warriors.

Then again, there was this sighting after Game 5 that is sure to warm the hearts of Warriors fans: Rich Kleiman, Durant’s New York-born-and-bred right-hand man and business manager whose ties to the Knicks have been well chronicled, was wearing one of those team-issued yellow Warriors t-shirts.


Some of Durant’s Warriors Teammates Believe He Will Sign With the Knicks, Per ESPN

ESPN’s Ian Begley reported on April 26th that both former and current teammates of Durant believe he is headed to the Knicks. Begley added that agents feel there just needs to be “pen to paper” for it to be official.

It’s easier to find street parking in Manhattan than it is to find an NBA executive, player or coach who doesn’t think Durant is going to sign with the Knicks in July.

Some of Durant’s former teammates think it’s going to happen, per ESPN sources. Several of his current teammates have told friends that they think it’s going to happen, sources said. Opposing agents believe it’s a fait accompli: “Just a matter of putting pen to paper,” is how one agent of another top free agent in the 2019 free-agent class put it.


Lakers Believed to Be “2nd or 3rd” on Kevin Durant’s List

As the Lakers continue to look for a second star to pair with LeBron James, so far there has been little indication that L.A. is the top choice for Durant. The Athletic’s Bill Oram reported that the Lakers are likely the “second or third” option for big-name free agents like Durant.

The Lakers will now turn their attention to an offseason in which they are expected to revisit trade options for Davis, while also chasing top targets in free agency – as unlikely as it is that Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant or Klay Thompson will come, according to a league source who believes the Lakers will be second or third on those players’ lists. The fear that the Lakers could strike out with their top targets has already led to some message massaging.