Where Kevin Durant decides to sign in free agency this summer will shape the landscape of NBA title contenders for years to come.
For the past three years, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors have run rampant over the rest of the NBA.
This summer, that all may change.
Durant is set to become an unrestricted free agent for the fourth straight summer, but unlike the past two years, his future in Golden State is legitimately in question this time around. While the Warriors can offer him an extra year on his next contract and nearly $60 million more than any other suitor can, Durant may eschew the additional money to embark upon a new challenge.
Rumors abound about Durant’s supposed interest in joining the New York Knicks, but they aren’t the only suitor who’ll be after his services this summer. Plenty of big-market teams can clear out enough salary-cap space to offer him a max deal beginning at $38.15 million (if they haven’t already), including the Los Angeles Clippers, Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers.
If Durant leaves the Warriors this summer, the NBA title picture will become more wide-open than it has been in the past half-decade. That makes his upcoming free agency perhaps the most consequential storyline to follow in a potentially explosive offseason around the league.
Durant’s agent, Rich Kleiman, recently declared his client remains “100 percent undecided” about where he’ll end up in July. The following five teams stand out as his most likely destinations, though.