The franchise will likely have some contract conundrums to deal with.
Green sides with Irving on earth being flat vs. round
NEW ORLEANS — This summer, Kevin Durant will have a financial decision to make. He’s likely to opt out of his contract and seek a new max deal, which is projected to start around $36 million.
If he does so — and Stephen Curry takes the max offer he will receive from the Warriors — Golden State will burst over the cap and, because Durant can’t be signed with Bird rights, will be severely limited in the construction of the rest of its roster.
That would force both Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala, who are also free agents, to either take a chunk below their market value or move elsewhere.
But Durant could nix that issue by taking a starting salary of $31.8 million — a 20 percent increase from this season, but about $4 million less than his projected max. That would allow the Warriors to sign him under his non-Bird rights, freeing them to go over the cap to retain Livingston and Iguodala.
At Saturday’s All-Star availability in New Orleans, Durant was asked if that’s something he would consider.
“We’ll figure that out when the time comes,” Durant said.
On Friday, Draymond Green told reporters that he’d always be willing to take less money to ensure a good situation remains intact, saying that money “can sabotage winning.” But, Green said, he’d never advise a teammate to take less.
“I don’t feel the need to go tell Shaun and Andre: ‘Yo, go take less money, money isn’t everything,’” Green said. “I don’t feel the need to say that, nor will I say that. You can’t tell what guy what money he should make or what’s important to him or his pocket. I don’t count anyone else’s pocket. Will we recruit them and want them back? Hell yeah. We’ll do everything we can to get them back. But I’m not going to tell them, ‘Hey, man, you should stay here for a little less money. You don’t need that money.’ That’s not me.”
Green and Cavaliers n guard Kyrie Irving have something in common besides their championship rings and Nike endorsements.
“Ky got me thinking about that, though,” Green said Saturday on his Dray Day podcast for Uninterrupted. “I’m rocking with Ky. … How do we stand on the earth if it’s round?”
Irving became a trending topic when, on a podcast with his teammates, he contended the Earth was flat. When asked about it by media at NBA All-Star, Irving doubled down.
Irving said there are tons of research to support his stance, and he encouraged people to study the topic for themselves. Even when confronted with basic, widely understood evidences, such as pictures from outer space, Irving didn’t budge.
“I’ve seen a lot of things that my educational system has said that was real that turned out to be completely fake,” Irving said “I don’t mind going against the grain in terms of my thoughts.”
He may have a convert in Green, one of the highest IQ players in the NBA.
During a live recording of the newest episode of his podcast before the All-Star Saturday festivities, Green joined Irving in questioning common knowledge.
“I haven’t heard anything Ky said, so I’m not sure what his argument was. But think about that. They said we’ve got pictures of it being round. But I can take my panoramic camera right now and make this room round. So you can’t tell me a picture makes it round.”
Does Green really believe the earth is flat? It’s hard to tell as he laughed through the discourse. If Nike comes out with a new Irving shoe that is, in some form or fashion, marketed as flat, it will be obvious what was happening here.
Stephen Curry got n dragged into a long-range shots challenge that raised $500,000 for the SagerStrong Foundation. Players combined for 13 makes from 3-point range for $130,000 for the charity, and TNT host Ernie Johnson then offered to raise it to $500,000 if two-time MVP Curry could make a halfcourt shot. Curry missed his attempts, but Shaquille O’Neal then hoisted Sager’s youngest son, Ryan, up so he could dunk to earn the total.