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Despite his Achilles injury, Kevin Durant is still the biggest prize of NBA free agency.
Durant had long been linked to the Knicks, but lately the Nets have emerged as the ones who could unite Kyrie Irving and Durant on the same team. Free agency starts on Sunday, yet no one seems to know where Durant will really go when all is said and done.
SNY’s Ian Begley reported Friday that Brooklyn isn’t actually the frontrunner to land Durant, as some have been thinking. Begley joined “Joe & Evan” on WFAN to elaborate on what his sources are telling him about KD’s future.
Irving seems likely to end up in Brooklyn. Multiple reports have indicated that he will leave Boston, and other reports claim that the Celtics are frontrunners to sign Kemba Walker, essentially confirming that Irving will depart. Durant and Irving are close friends, so it had long been assumed that they would want to link up this summer in free agency.
But so many things have been complicated by the ruptured Achilles injury that Durant sustained in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. The 30-year-old will now miss the entirety of the 2019/2020 season, which certainly factors into his decision about where he will ultimately sign.
Speculation around Durant and the Knicks has been around for a while, but has faded as of late as Brooklyn has come into the picture. Begley reiterated that the Knicks still want to sign Durant if they’re given the opportunity to do so.
“They’re in on Durant. They would love to sign him. I don’t think they have significant reservations about giving him a max deal and letting him rehab … but I don’t see a scenario where they see something and say ‘hey we’re backing off here’ … They have other players that they have their eye on if they miss out on the top targets, which is Durant and Kawhi (Leonard), and pairing Kyrie with Durant or Kawhi. They miss out on those guys, they’re looking at some younger players on the market, guys like Terry Rozier, Julius Randle, Bobby Portis.”
Free agency officially begins at 6 p.m on Sunday. At that point, teams are able to contact players and the agents who represent them.
The first step in the process for Durant will be meetings with teams. Begley shined some more light on how Durant is expected to conduct his sit-downs with his many suitors.
“I wouldn’t expect these teams to have the opportunity to come in there with a big video presentation with a million people to try and pitch him. It seems like he wants it to be low key here in New York.”