Kevin Durant Free Agency Thread

[AndroidMan]

Warriors motto/slogan Strength in Numbers can stay the same. Metaphor changes to how the insane number their tax bill will be for the foreseeable future if they sign a big name and have to re-up Curry at market value. Perhaps, Lacob and his staff are so advanced, they'll outdo Prokhorov and set a new record for luxury tax bill.

[bondom34]

Stephen Curry contract 12 million 2018 33 mil.
Draymond Green 15
Klay Thompson 16

Spurs 50 mil Parker 12 , Leonard 16 LMA 21
Clippers 70 mil Griffin 22, CP3 24, Jordan 21

Yes we all know.

And Curry will be paid soon.

And you don't have a single big man on the roster with this plan.

And enjoy paying Barnes.

FYI Green is 2nd team all NBA PF and plays C sometimes so yes they have a bigman
. Plus have almost 60 mil to find some more.
If you say GS has 0 big men one can question how much you know about nba besides your own team.


For the record I'd pass on Durant ,1 of my fav players, at 40 mil since GS doesn't need him to get a championship or win a lot of games.

Plus the other contenders except SA don't necessarily need a 4th max player.

Prefer quality depth.

That's nice.

That big man rotation didn't do so hot against the Cavs though, so I'd patch it up. You don't have 60 mil either, if you sign Durant you're on your ring chaser rant again.

But hey, go with Green as the only 4/5 on the roster, please. I hope you do.

[bmurph128]

Durant is one of the greatest players in the nba. And klay and/or curry would thrive as spot up shooters, and of course can be go-to guys when KD is sitting or when he is cold that night. Trust me, having three of the most deadliest shooters in the world who can also create their own shots is not anywhere close to an issue and will open up the game for everyone.

Honestly, if you do not think adding a superstar to a great core is beneficial , than you really do not understand basketball.
For instance, Lebron to miami..sure wade and bosh's stats took a hit, but they won two rings out of it. That's a fair trade off if you ask me. We arent talking about adding aldridge to an aging core. We are talking about adding someone much better to a cor ein its absolute prime here.
Also KD > both HB and Andre combined
I understand the depth concerns, but those can be addressed by vet minimum ring chasers..and that is okay because that is all that will be needed with four all stars, two of them being superstars on the same squad.

As far as record goes, I think the move will be for dominating the playoffs, not the regular season.

Adding Durant would be obviously beneficial in some ways.

LeBron to Miami was different - for one, he's far better than Durant. For another, he came in and was THE guy.

Is that what happens when he comes to Golden State? One of Curry/Thompson/Durant would see a drastic decrease in possessions and stats. This could definitely make the Warriors better...but when they won it all their strength was their defense and Durant is not as good a defender as Iguadala.

This is not like getting LeBron where he can be a lock down defender. You'd be swapping defense for offense when your offense at times couldn't get any better anyways.

Durant would likely guarantee coming out of the West for a while, but I wouldn't crown them right away until I see how their defense looks with that lineup.

There were a lot of questions as to Lebron's fit next to wade and who would really be the main option..hell people still have debates on who "the man" is in okc..my answer to how he would fit next to curry, I think it will sort itself out and they can be options 1A and 1B sort of like current day okc

Lebron is a better player, but KD would be joining a better core. And lebron is not "far" superior than KD. KD is an nba superstar for chrissake..And it is arguable that steph and kd are a better fit together than lbj and wade were..klay is more of an ideal 3rd option anyway, and green is better as a fourth option/facilitator.

And andre on defense is great, but we wouldnt need him to guard KD anymore, and its not like he had a great defensive series against lebron anyways..KD is underrated on defense as well. And no they are not swapping offense for defense that is like the most simplistic way of looking at it and a very generic statement

Let me put it this way..absolutely no team would take HB&Andre over KD no matter how bad the defense on the team currently is...that includes the warriors. Besides, they can always find defensive specialists to fill out the roster. Elite players dont come along often, giving up an opportunity to acquire one for fear of fit is just ridiculous. SUperstar players have skillsets that can adapt to most if not all situations.

That's fair, and I can't disagree with much of what you said - except that LeBron is by far and away better than Durant. Durant will never be thought of as an all time great.

There are several superstars that are not even close to the best player in the world.

I just don't know if I would mess with the insane chemistry that the Warriors have.

[Pennebaker]

I cannot imagine any way in which Kevin Durant ends up in Golden State after they basically humiliated him and the Thunder in the WCF. From that point Durant was likely rooting hard for the Cavs to beat the Warriors, and if reports are true, he was excited to see it happen.

So I don't think Durant, as a league MVP himself, is going to join a team that already has the reigning league MVP. It will look so bad - worse than LeBron looked joining Wade (who was never even an NBA MVP, let alone a 2x NBA MVP).

[improper]

I find it strange that, if these stories were about the Cavs pursuing Durant, every post would be about "how much help does LeBron need?" Yet very few people post that same thing about the 73 win Warriors with the first ever unanimous MVP. I smell hypocrisy.

[Senor Chang]

All the Warriors need to do is decide if Barnes will actually hit his open shots next year or not. If barne's doesn't pull a 2012 James Harden then the Warrriors win easily. They don't need Durant really

[Warriorfan]

I find it strange that, if these stories were about the Cavs pursuing Durant, every post would be about "how much help does LeBron need?" Yet very few people post that same thing about the 73 win Warriors with the first ever unanimous MVP. I smell hypocrisy.

Actually most long time warrior posters state why break up the chemistry.
Because they got outplayed by Clev some are jumping on the Durant wagon.

[TaylorMonkey]

I find it strange that, if these stories were about the Cavs pursuing Durant, every post would be about "how much help does LeBron need?" Yet very few people post that same thing about the 73 win Warriors with the first ever unanimous MVP. I smell hypocrisy.

Actually most long time warrior posters state why break up the chemistry.
Because they got outplayed by Clev some are jumping on the Durant wagon.

Some longtime warrior posters (like myself) have been saying to go for Durant at 26 million over Barnes at 20 million since last off season.

Barnes getting paid 4-5 million more than the best Warrior players is going to be a chemistry killer. Whatever chemistry there was did not prevent Barnes from going 5-32 in the last three games of the Finals when he gets the most open shots of anyone on the team.

Durant is also a clear way to upgrade for the eventual (and seemingly current) decline of Bogut and Iguodala. Standing pat (and signing Barnes to a big contract) means cap hell with largely the same team and a commitment to getting worse in the next few years.

[Rafael122]

Just by the Knicks making that trade today opens up another team that needs a center. Knicks aren't going anywhere anyway, I'd rather have Bogut on a 1 year deal at $12 million than Dwight at 3 for $25 million a year.

I think it's very easy for Golden State to trade Bogut, Iggy (if needed), and renounce Barnes and Ezeli. By doing that, it opens up about $43 million in cap room, more than enough to get Durant, a center (a Noah type), and fill out the bench with the remaining money. Heck, even if they just traded one of Iggy or Bogut, they would still be in decent shape.

[Warriorfan]

I find it strange that, if these stories were about the Cavs pursuing Durant, every post would be about "how much help does LeBron need?" Yet very few people post that same thing about the 73 win Warriors with the first ever unanimous MVP. I smell hypocrisy.

Actually most long time warrior posters state why break up the chemistry.
Because they got outplayed by Clev some are jumping on the Durant wagon.

Some longtime warrior posters (like myself) have been saying to go for Durant at 26 million over Barnes at 20 million since last off season.

Barnes getting paid 4-5 million more than the best Warrior players is going to be a chemistry killer. Whatever chemistry there was did not prevent Barnes from going 5-32 in the last three games of the Finals when he gets the most open shots of anyone on the team.

Durant is also a clear way to upgrade for the eventual (and seemingly current) decline of Bogut and Iguodala. Standing pat (and signing Barnes to a big contract) means cap hell with largely the same team and a commitment to getting worse in the next few years.

Some pts.

There are few saying keep Barnes at 20 so not a great analagy.

Durant doesn't replace the defense of Bogut or Iggy who I feel will be 6 million dollar players in the future.

The warrior offense is already number one.
Does the offensive gain offset defensive loss.

I'm OK with Durant at 28 but the number will probably be 38 million with 3 mil yr incrs.

When you already have 3 top 20 players adding 4 10 million players is better than 1 40 million dollar guy IMO.

Green and Thompson in 3 yrs will be 30 mil a year players does GS have the flexibility.

GS is trying to be a dynasty so long term thinking comes into play when the present is already solid

[SFrush]

All the Warriors need to do is decide if Barnes will actually hit his open shots next year or not. If barne's doesn't pull a 2012 James Harden then the Warrriors win easily. They don't need Durant really

Lacob isn't going to wait around for that if he thinks he can land Durant.

[TaylorMonkey]

Some pts.

There are few saying keep Barnes at 20 so not a great analagy.

Durant doesn't replace the defense of Bogut or Iggy who I feel will be 6 million dollar players in the future.

Warriors can sign Durant with only losing one of Bogut or Iguodala. So Durant wouldn't necessarily replace them but he could bolster the core and leave room to shore that up in 2017 when the cap goes even higher.

The warrior offense is already number one.
Does the offensive gain offset defensive loss.

It doesn't matter if it's #1. The offense can still get better. The offensive gain will hold for longer than the defensive gain will hold with Iguodala and Bogut declining. And again, there are possibilities to shore things up. Also we saw that Durant can be a very good defender as a 4 when the league goes small.

I'm OK with Durant at 28 but the number will probably be 38 million with 3 mil yr incrs.

When you already have 3 top 20 players adding 4 10 million players is better than 1 40 million dollar guy IMO.

Green and Thompson in 3 yrs will be 30 mil a year players does GS have the flexibility.

GS is trying to be a dynasty so long term thinking comes into play when the present is already solid

Where are you pulling these numbers from? It's impossible for any player to be paid more than the max. And the max is not 40 million or even 30 million.

You're okay with Durant at 28? Well great news, because the max this year is 26 million!

So it makes all the sense in the world to lock him in now at those prices before the max goes up even more next year.

Green and Thompson in 3 years will still be 15-17 million, because that's the contract they signed. Not 30 million. Again, where are you getting these numbers from? Signing Durant IS the plan for a dynasty and for the long term. Standing pat going to cap hell with Barnes and Ezeli is not, while Iguodala and Bogut decline and we waste prime years of Curry/Klay/Dray. Sign Durant this year and it's possible the team is even stronger with a better outlook in 2017.

Signing Ezeli and Barnes actually KILLS flexibility.

Barnes at 20 million to "keep it together", or Durant at 26 million. Which would you rather have?

[Warriorfan]

Green and Thompson in 3 years will still be 15-17 million, because that's the contract they signed. Not 30 million. Again, where are you getting these numbers from? Signing Durant IS the plan for a dynasty and for the long term. Standing pat going to cap hell with Barnes and Ezeli is not, while Iguodala and Bogut decline and we waste prime years of Curry/Klay/Dray. Sign Durant this year and it's possible the team is even stronger with a better outlook in 2017.

Signing Ezeli and Barnes actually KILLS flexibility.

Barnes at 20 million to "keep it together", or Durant at 26 million. Which would you rather have?[/quote]


In no place do I put keep Ezelli or Barnes first off.

Cap is 94
Max deal player under 10 yrs 30%
30% x .3 is 28
Max deal player 10 yrs 35 %
Cap is expected upwards 108 million
Cap .35 x 110 is 38 million.

If Durant signs 2yr deal 2nd yr option
He gets deal starting 38 mil 7% raises.
So he makes 60 mil more if he signs long deal next yr.

Klay Thompson is free agent 2019. Green 2020.

Who knows what cap is but at least
33 mil each. 110x.3 33
I expect their contracts to be much bigger.

[BigtimeNBAfan]

I find it strange that, if these stories were about the Cavs pursuing Durant, every post would be about "how much help does LeBron need?" Yet very few people post that same thing about the 73 win Warriors with the first ever unanimous MVP. I smell hypocrisy.

Cleveland fans were saying that about Lebron when he was in Miami. There were no bigger Lebron haters than Cavs fans from July 8th 2010 to July of 2014.

[DubTheVanDamage]

I find it strange that, if these stories were about the Cavs pursuing Durant, every post would be about "how much help does LeBron need?" Yet very few people post that same thing about the 73 win Warriors with the first ever unanimous MVP. I smell hypocrisy.

Wait a minute, you've constructed a straw man then, based on that, claim victimhood and accuse others of hypocrisy? I had really hope the insecurity of Cavs fans would be satiated by a championship.

I don't know what happened to Curry after he came back from his injury. He wasn't the same player, be it timing, the injury or just playing poorly. Whatever it was, the Warriors still almost won.

Whatever happens with Durant, it won't be about getting Curry help, it'll be about making the Warriors better. That's exactly what they should do and whatever Myers, West and the rest of the organization decide to do in the offseason, chances are they'll do a great job.

[soxfan2003]

Warriors at this point would be nuts to not go after KD. It is pretty apparent that they should lose a few FAs to avoid overpaying them and Iggy/Bogut are getting older and are at ages where more rapid decline can be expected. Curry/Klay/Green have probably peaked as a trio.

I hope the Celtics get KD but I'm expecting he either stays with OKC or goes to GSW.

[andremcosta]

Treating it as guaranteed is all wrong. It's only a small possibility.

I'm not even sure Curry and Thompson wants Durant in. They have the best team in the league and are in a great shape to fight for rings in the next 5 years or so.

Durant wil put Thompson and Green in role player situations and will make Curry lose his MVP chances.

What GSW needs now is to raise their heads, start playing like men again. Some minor adjustments.

[gold0259]

Festus should not have played down the stretch, key foul on lebron while shooting a three. Andy should not gotten a sniff down the stretch, and currys rushed falling away near top of the key three when he should have settled for more ball movement GS basketball. Took it upon himself (steph) and it didn't fall. Its very hard to get passed a 3-1 lead and lose 4-3. Durant would make the team almost unfair, and would be more fulfilling to win it again with our current makeup. Regular season doesn't matter, only home court secure that and then rest the players. Draymond I expect to expand his game with his confidence improving. LOYALTY.. Sure be pist but imagine how the dubs feel. There pist as well the only difference is, is that they can be pist but still hop in there BMW I8's

[BayArea408415]

Wait until GSW is paying Barnes 20 mil a year then get back to me.

Do you really that is going to happen or are you hoping it does?

[Anticon]

If anything, I think this does the opposite. If you thought the Warriors were unbeatable before, and so the best bet was just to join them, that's clearly no longer the case. The league has adapted to some of their innovations, particularly the role of Draymond, and both OKC and CLE showed it was possible to diminish their deadliest weapons.

So presuming Durant cares about winning a title for OKC, that remains the best situation for him, since the West looks more open than it did in April. Joining the Warriors wouldn't really make sense.