Perhaps no two players are performing better in the NBA playoffs than Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. Their respective teams, the Celtics and Warriors, are deep and primed to make deep runs into June. And there's no reason to think they can't be in the same spot 12 months from now.
At the same time, no two players are more rumored to be the twin free-agent prizes of the New York Knicks this summer. Indeed, desperate Knicks fans - are there any other kind? - have dream bubbles of Irving dashing down the hardwood, muscling his way into the paint, then dishing to Durant, who flicks a perfect rainbow that drops gently into the hoop, cradled by the net. Nothing could help local fans forget one unicorn (Kristaps Porzingis) than two men with three rings.
Irving and Durant would indeed make the Knicks something they haven't been in nearly 20 years - relevant, that's not even a question for the most jaded Knicks devotees.
The only real question is: Why would they do it?
Why would Durant, who left a contender in Oklahoma City to play for a champion in Oakland, suddenly covet a club that hasn't won a championship since Richard Nixon was president? Many have questioned the soft-serve convenience of his move to the Warriors, including Stephen A. Smith, who called it the weakest move ever by an NBA star. But now that Durant is there, it's hard to find a logical reason for him to leave. The Warriors have won two titles since he arrived, are primed to win a third and could easily win a fourth-straight NBA title next year.
It takes granite stones to leave well-run contenders for a dumpster fire like the Knicks. And if Durant didn't have them in his prime, why assume he grew them this year? We also need to realize that Durant is 30, and an old 30, about to finish his 12th NBA season. Consider he's played 849 regular-season games plus 135 playoff games, meaning he's played nearly 14 seasons worth of games. While he's at his unstoppable best, you can't expect five more years of this from the long, lanky scoring machine. He will, in the next few years, lose some of his transcendent skills.
Irving is the more likely basketball marlin the Knicks can land on the shores of 7th Ave. Unlike Durant, Irving feels a natural pull from the Big Apple because he's from Newark. Other than a statement of intent to re-sign in Boston before this season, Irving has never expressed a deep desire to stay in Cleveland or Boston and has more of a mercenary's mien than Durant, who is not only more comfortable in the background but has legendary rabbit ears, especially in social media and live media, where his terse retorts have become routine. He even created a fake Twitter handle to monitor the current groupthink over his name and game.
So while Irving seems to have the spiritual hide to handle the Big Apple, Durant is way too sensitive to smile before the bouquet of microphones after every Knicks game. Durant loves to slither into the background of smaller markets like OKC and Oakland. Plus, for all his obvious prowess, Durant isn't even the big man on campus. The Warriors are Steph Curry's club, not Durant's.
Why would either flee the fiery intensity of regular playoff runs to play for James Dolan? The Knicks went 17-65 this season. Fans will argue they tanked for the rights to Zion Williamson. But they only have a 14% chance to bag the Duke star. They also ended the 2014-15 season 17-65. Were they hoping for Williamson then? They have won one playoff series in 20 years. Was that all part of an ingenious plan to pluck Williamson before he was born?
Chances are the Knicks won't pinch the winning draft ticket out of that spinning bauble. So they will snag some variable and hope he lives up to the third man of this holy hardwood trinity. That's assuming Irving and Durant will still come to Gotham if the Knicks don't get the only surefire star in the draft. Maybe if the Knicks get R.J. Barrett or Ja Morant, that will be enough to court two stars to the MSG court.
It's far easier to see the upbeat, East Coast native Irving in orange and blue than the West Coast, low-key regularity of Durant. Irving has the home draw, while Durant's passed on his chance to play for his hometown Washington Wizards. Durant's only possible incentive is that symbolic talisman as one of the five greatest players in NBA history. He can't catch Jordan, but in order to match his contemporary tormentor, LeBron James, he can't do it by coasting to every June with the Warriors. Since King James won titles in two cities - particularly the frostbitten sports outpost of Cleveland - Durant would have to join a forlorn franchise and lead it to an NBA title. The Knicks certainly qualify as that kind of team.
Is Kevin Durant that kind of player? There's nothing in his past that proves he is.
Follow Jason on Twitter: @JasonKeidel
