DREAMING ABOUT DURANT
Could superstar join Warriors in free agency?
The crowd at Oracle Arena is a spoiled, if appreciative, bunch.
It’s a natural side effect of the basketball wizardry that has gone on with their Golden State Warriors in the last 54 weeks, a surreal stretch in which they won all 41 of their regular-season home games in the kind of entertaining fashion that has made them the darlings of the NBA.
So when the oohs and aahs Saturday were inspired by Kevin Durant, who has the locals daring to dream in the midst of this dream season, it was as good a sign as any that they’re captivated by the notion of the Oklahoma City Thunder star coming their way via free agency this summer. And with good reason. Even though the Warriors won the game 116-108, Durant’s 40point, 14-rebound, five-assist performance was as good a job interview as you’ll ever find. But anyone who has watched Durant for the last nine seasons didn’t need this performance to be reminded of his special talent.
“I mean, we’re not scared of neither one of these teams,” Durant said when asked about the Warriors and the Western Conference’s other top team, the San Antonio Spurs. “We’re going to play our game. Nobody in this locker room is scared. … If we want to get to where we want to get to, we’ve got to play them, so we’re not ducking nobody.
“It’s our first time playing them, so, yeah, we’re going to learn something about (them). We came out, we played hard, they played hard, it was on their home court, tough game ... we lost. Black and white, man. We know what we’ve got to do.”
The real question is, when July 1 rolls around, is there a chance the dominoes will fall in a way that Durant might come Golden State’s way?
The Warriors have been hearing for years that they’d be on Durant’s short list. But because of their status, not only holding the 2014-15 title but also having a 46-4 record that has them looking like the favorites to defend, there’s an if-it-ain’t-broke-don’tfix-it component that simply can’t be resolved until the postseason plays out.
If the Warriors win it all again, the pressure to pay restricted free agent small forward Harrison Barnes his exorbitant market value to return will be great if only because he will have proved — twice — to be a pivotal part of their core. But if they lose — and if the Thunder aren’t the ones unseating them from the NBA’s throne — the door will be open to the scenario.
“It’s hard for it to not enter your mind,” Durant said about free agency. “There’s a lot of uncertainty going on, because I haven’t really thought that far. But I’m just trying to focus on playing basketball.
“Once that time comes, I’ll make that decision. I’ll sit down and talk to my closest friends and family and figure it out. But right now I’m just trying to be the best basketball player I can be every single day. I have to be at a high level, an elite level, every day, at practice, shoot-arounds and games, and that’s a tough task, so I can’t focus on anything else other than that.”
If there’s a relevant factor that might help Thunder general manager Sam Presti and his staff sleep at night, it’s that only the Thunder offer Durant the chance to leave the kind of legacy that is so rare in today’s NBA.
The potential remains for a Tim Duncan-type story for Durant in Oklahoma City. But it’s often forgotten that Duncan won his first title two seasons in, and it would help if Durant and the Thunder won their first championship together four months from now as a foolproof way to ensure he returns.
Durant was able to show Warriors fans why they should want him to join their elite club. After all, he’s one of the most dangerous scorers the game has ever seen.
Durant in Oracle Arena on this night was something to remember. Now for the part we don’t know: Whether this might become the new norm.