Kevin Durant Is Planning to Stay With Golden State Warriors, But 'Anything Can Happen'
Kevin Durant, who seems to be in the running for Finals MVP for his outstanding performance in the series so far, has confirmed that he plans to re-sign with the Golden State Warriors this summer. There is one thing that he admits could get in the way, though.
Durant has sat down with ESPN's Rachel Nichols this Thursday, June 7, and along the way, the topic of his plans for the offseason came up. He is currently on a two-year deal that's been a very team-friendly contract for the Warriors, a $51 million contract that has an opt-out clause that the All-star forward could take up this coming NBA season.
"I'm planning on staying with the Warriors, and we'll figure the rest out," Durant said, confirming that he is sticking with the defending NBA champs for a bit longer — that is, if everything works out with the new contract.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
According to sources, though, Durant is currently thinking of opting out of his discounted contract for the 2018-2019 season. Declining his player option means that once again, Durant will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, according to sources placed in the league.
It was the same deal that allowed the Warriors to negotiate higher paying deals for forward Andre Iguodala as well as backup point guard Shaun Livingston, keeping the core of the bench that led to a 73-win season for the Warriors intact for the most part. It was a discount that also led to Durant getting around $10 million less than his max value at the time.
"His gesture of taking less gave us the ability to be very aggressive in pursuing Shaun and Andre," Warriors general manager Bob Myers said at the time.
"What Kevin did shows who he is, shows what he's about, and I think it's clear that that's winning. Without him doing that it would have been a different roster, and clearly to me, a roster that wasn't as good as the one we have right now," Myers continued.
Opting out of the contract now opens the possibility for Durant to earn more with a restructured new deal, which will likely add a pay increase for him, as CBS Sports pointed out.
Durant confirmed with USA Today that he will be working out the contract with the Warriors, but with him being a free agent this offseason, something else might come up. The 2017 Finals MVP is certainly not backing away from the possibility.
"I said that earlier this year. I didn't plan on anything else. But this is the NBA, and anything can happen," Durant said.
"And I know that anything can happen, (because) I've been a part of this league for so long now," he added.
