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Despite the rumors swirling in the last month, the Brooklyn Nets are not the current favorites or frontrunners to sign Kevin Durant, according to Ian Begley of SNY. The New York Knicks still believe they still have a good chance of inking the free agent star.
According to David Aldridge of The Athletic, Durant has not yet decided if he will meet with teams once free agency starts on Sunday night, but if he does, the meetings will take place in New York, where he has stayed since undergoing surgery in his injured Achilles tendon.
“Only Durant and those closest to him know if he favors one team over others at this point. But again, per sources, the idea that the Nets are currently the front runners for Durant is not accurate,” wrote Begley.
Currently, the Nets, the Knicks, and the L.A. Clippers are vying for his services, while a return to the Golden State Warriors is also a possibility, as they can offer the most out of any NBA team.
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The Warriors could dole out a five-year deal, $221 million deal for Durant — one that could pay him a whopping $50 million by age 35, the last year of his potential deal.
Both New York teams, the Clippers, and any other NBA franchise can only offer him a four-year, $164 million deal — $57 million less than the Warriors.
Durant told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports during the season that his focus would be on getting the most money possible in a long-term contract after giving the Warriors discounts in the last two offseasons.
Golden State has the means to afford the flame-throwing luxury tax burden by means of ticket sales and revenue coming through their newly-built state-of-the-art Chase Center in downtown San Francisco — yet it's still to be known if there are other factors besides money after suffering a major injury that will likely keep him sidelined for all of the 2019-20 season.
