Kevin Durant made the most controversial free-agency move in NBA history when he left the Oklahoma City Thunder for the Golden State Warriors in 2016.
Before he signed with the Warriors, Durant sent a chilling text to his teammates about possibly running it back with them in Oklahoma City in the following year. However, Durant did not come through with his tease and the Thunder were left disappointed.
“Kev left. Went to Golden State. Before that, he text me and Serge like, ‘How y’all think about bringing this thing back for one more year?’ I was like, ‘If everybody is on board. I’ll come back. I’ll do one year,’” Dion Waiters, a former Thunder guard, said during his appearance on the Real Talk podcast by Miles Johnson.
Waiters, a key bench cog for the Thunder in 2016, said he was willing to sacrifice financial gain to run it back with the Thunder, then led by Durant, Russell Westbrook, and Serge Ibaka.
“I was willing to sabotage a four-year contract for one. To bring back that team. Because I’ve seen how close we was,” Waiters said.
How Kevin Durant’s Decision Impacted The Thunder And The NBA World
In the 2016 playoffs, the Thunder were just one win away, and even led in the final quarter of multiple closeout games, from reaching the 2016 NBA Finals before blowing a 3-1 series lead against the 73-win Warriors, headlined by Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Andre Iguodala.
Just over a month after the collapse, free agent Durant shocked the world by signing with the Warriors. Had OKC won just one more game and reached the Finals, it is widely believed Durant would have stayed with the Thunder.
Durant’s arrival turned a 73-win team into a juggernaut. The Warriors went on to make three straight NBA Finals appearances, winning back-to-back championships in 2017 and 2018, crushing LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Left alone in OKC, Westbrook went on a historic, vengeful tear as he became the first player since Oscar Robertson to average a triple-double over an entire season, winning the 2017 NBA MVP award and establishing himself as a beloved icon in Oklahoma City.
It can be argued that Durant’s move normalized superstars joining forces in free agency to guarantee rings, a trend that defined the late 2010s and early 2020s across the league.
Meanwhile, after Kevin Durant left OKC, Waiters signed a two-year deal with the Miami Heat in July 2016. Waiters then won an NBA championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020.
Kevin Durant Reveals Why He Left The OKC Thunder
Kevin Durant was frustrated about the OKC Thunder’s roster composition, leading him to sign with the Warriors in the summer of 2016.
“In OKC, I played with a lot of athletes, I didn’t play with a lot of skilled guys, shooters/ball handlers. I was like I need a change — before the season even started. I was tired of having to be the only guy that can make 3s, make jump shots consistently,” Durant said in All The Smoke podcast in 2020.
During that time, the Thunder had non-shooters such as Westbrook, Steven Adams, and Andre Roberson on their starting unit, hurting the team’s spacing.
With the Warriors, Durant got the best shooting backcourt in NBA history with Steph Curry and Klay Thompson.
Durant is now a two-time NBA champion, but that 2016 decision is forever a caveat in his legacy.
Ex-Thunder Guard Reveals Kevin Durant Betraying Text Before Warriors Signing