The Celtics had a chance at landing Kevin Durant, after all. It just so happens Boston fell off the radar when the Golden State Warriors lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in last year’s NBA Finals.
If the Warriors had won the NBA Finals, Kevin Durant could be in a Celtics jersey
Report: “Boston might have landed Durant had the Warriors won the Finals -- as Durant wouldn’t want to have looked like a man hopping aboard a dynasty.”
Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
In a Wednesday ESPN The Magazine story, a section titled “Boston C Party” details Celtics’ free agency meeting with Durant in the Hamptons over the summer.
On Saturday, July 2, Celtics owners Wyc Grousbeck and Steve Pagliuca, GM Danny Ainge, and Patriots QB Tom Brady fly to the East Hampton Airport to meet with Durant. The players they bring: Isaiah Thomas, Marcus Smart, Kelly Olynyk and Jae Crowder. Thomas, Olynyk and Crowder pose for photos with Brady next to the Celtics owners’ jet, and, in the meeting, the Celtics group pitches teaming KD with Horford -- not knowing Durant had already heard that idea just days before in Oklahoma City. Still, Durant meets with Boston for four hours. And, in the aftermath, many sources around the NBA come to believe this: Boston might have landed Durant had the Warriors won the Finals -- as Durant wouldn’t want to have looked like a man hopping aboard a dynasty.
Why this makes sense
This isn’t the first time Durant said he wouldn’t have joined the Warriors had they won the championship. In an earlier Rolling Stone cover story, the former NBA Most Valuable Player said he “damn sure” wouldn’t have hopped on the Golden State wagon if they hoisted the Larry O’Brien trophy last June.
Some part of Durant knew he’d already punched his ticket. “It felt like that whole thing was set up for me to leave,” he says, “especially after they blew a lead in the finals, because I damn sure wasn’t going there if they’d won. But after Game Seven, I called up my agent and said, ‘Damn, dude, Golden State – what if?’ ”
Durant’s a competitor. That’s undeniable. And as a competitor, there’s no way he was hopping onto the Warriors bandwagon the summer after they won an NBA championship. His pride wouldn’t let him do it. The league wouldn’t let him do it. Fans wouldn’t let him do it. It just wasn’t going to happen.
Boston would have made sense.
Why this doesn’t make sense
Al Horford had also engaged in talks with Oklahoma City. During their meeting, according to the ESPN The Magazine report, Russell Westbrook asked his MVP teammate how he could change his game if Durant decided to stay:
Over steaks, Westbrook, in an effort to lobby Durant to stay in Oklahoma City, asks Durant what he could do differently. The Thunder contingent leaves the restaurant that night with the impression that Durant will return.
A Westbrook-Durant-Horford trio could have been as good as any trio the league has to offer, including the one in Cleveland. If Durant decided to stay put, Horford would have gone to the Thunder to form another super team. His decision, single-handedly, could have altered Boston’s future.
What happened
Durant ended up signing a two-year deal worth $54 million to join the Warriors over the summer. His contract features a player option for the second year, and he is expected to opt out and re-sign for a longer term and more money this summer.
The Warriors boast a league-best 30-5 record. Durant leads the team in scoring (25.7 points per game), rebounding (8.7 boards per game), blocks (1.5 per game), and player efficiency rating (27.4). His .537 field goal percentage is the best in his career of nine-plus years. And Durant is anchoring a Warriors defense that is making it near impossible for opponents to score.
Decisions, decisions.
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