For one-and-a-half seasons, Dion Waiters thought the Oklahoma City Thunder would be the team he'd represent for years to come. The team had one of the best duos in the NBA, and Waiters knew they were geared to win a championship sooner rather than later.
Everything changed when Kevin Durant decided to sign with the Golden State Warriors this summer. It meant a retooling of the roster and marked the end of Waiters' tenure with the team.
He since moved on and signed with the Miami Heat for two years on a $5.9 million contract and is looking to make South Beach his permanent home -especially if his stint there is a successful one.
On Monday, Waiters' new team will face the Thunder. Ahead of the matchup, Waiters could not help but think about everything that happened over the summer, ponder what could have been and discuss how much he learned from his former teammate. Per Tom D'Angelo of the Palm Beach Post:
“At the end of the day if they would have kept it together I’m pretty sure I would have went back one more year to see what we could do because we were 24 minutes away from the Finals. Once things went the way it went I kind of knew.
“Just seeing those guys on an everyday bases, working with KD every day. … Some nights we’d go to the arena, just me and him, just everyday constant just working with him. I was able to really just take a lot from him.
“We built something special there that was bigger than basketball.”
And even if Durant's decision was what caused his stay in OKC to end, Waiters made it clear that he has no ill-feelings toward the 2014 MVP and understands why he made that choice.
“We talked, he made a decision. He wanted something different. He wanted to get out of that comfort zone. I guess he made the best decision for him. Things didn’t go as planned so I just had to move on.
“I ain’t mad at him. He’s still my brother to this day.”
The 24-year-old Syracuse product is now focused on the job at hand and that is to make an impact and contribute to a Heat squad who lost two of their best players during the offseason. With his outside shooting and postseason experience, Waiters will be relied upon to bring leadership to the new-look team and help Miami get to the playoffs.
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