I will be the first to say it. I didn’t think that Durant would leave OKC. Heck, OKC didn’t think Durant would leave OKC. However that is just what the superstar has done. Durant is will sign a two-year, $54.3 million contract with the already well stacked Golden State Warriors. The deal will also include a player option after the first year.
“The primary mandate I had for myself in making this decision was to have it based on the potential for my growth as a player — as that has always steered me in the right direction,” Durant wrote. “But I am also at a point in my life where it is of equal importance to find an opportunity that encourages my evolution as a man: moving out of my comfort zone to a new city and community which offers the greatest potential for my contribution and personal growth. “With this in mind, I have decided that I am going to join the Golden State Warriors.” “It really pains me to know that I will disappoint so many people with this choice, but I believe I am doing what I feel is the right thing at this point in my life and my playing career.”
“Kevin made an indelible mark on the Thunder organization and the state of Oklahoma as a founding father of this franchise,” Presti said. “We can’t adequately articulate what he meant to the foundation of this franchise and our success. While clearly disappointing that he has chosen to move on, the core values that he helped establish only lead to us thanking him for the many tangible and intangible ways that he helped our program.” ~Thunder general manager Sam Presti