Kevin Durant's longtime manager and business partner, Rich Kleiman, had pushed Durant hard into signing with the New York Knicks, but the two-time Finals MVP wasn't ready to take that step with a team with such a dilapidated roster.

Marc Berman of the New York Post revealed how Kleiman tried to persuade Durant into inking a deal with the franchise he has followed from a young age, even with aspirations to one day run the front office:

If Durant was to come to the Knicks after battling back from the most devastating injury an NBA player could have, he needed a star partner because of the Knicks’ unproven roster, according to an NBA source.

His agent, Rich Kleiman, a native New Yorker and longtime Knicks fan, saw appeal in reviving a dead but storied franchise that dwarfs the Nets in this city. Durant wasn’t ready for that challenge.

Durant wanted to join a team with potential, but most importantly, he didn't want the constant pecking that comes with being considered the “savior” of a franchise:

Bleacher Report stated neither Durant nor Irving wanted the “savior’’ role afforded star players who join the Knicks. It does take a brave soul to accept the role of Knicks’ savior — LeBron James didn’t want it — after all the franchise has been though the past 18 sad seasons with Dolan as owner. Kleiman pushed the Knicks hard, according to a source.

In different interviews, Kleiman has always claimed to be an advisor, but never to be one to tell Durant what to do or how to do it. It seems this instance was different, as it was his only chance to have his cake and eat it too. But the fantasy of seeing his own client revive a ghastly franchise will likely remain just that — a fantasy.