Kevin Durant Was Upset After Father Met with Knicks in 2019 Free Agency, Book Says

Kevin Durant's father met with New York Knicks brass in 2019 and attempted to persuade his son to abandon his plan to sign in Brooklyn to become a Knick.

Stefon Bondy of the New York Daily News obtained a copy of Can't Knock the Hustle, a book by Matt Sullivan that details the clandestine meeting. Durant was unaware the meeting took place and was angry with his father because he “didn’t want his pops f--king with the plan."

Wayne Pratt allegedly met with Knicks executives Steve Mills and Scott Perry, which constituted a violation of the NBA's tampering rules. Pratt is a longtime Knicks fan who felt Durant was selling himself short signing with the Nets rather than the Knicks.

“The Knicks is Mecca,” Pratt texted his son. “If you want to do it, do it big. If you want to be a New Yorker, be a Knick.”

Durant, of course, ignored the advice of his father and followed through with his plan to join the Nets. During an appearance on The Old Man and the Three podcast last year, Durant said being the "King of New York" was never something that appealed to him.

"I didn't want to be the savior of the Knicks or New York," Durant said. "I didn't care about being the king of New York. That never really moved me. I didn't care about being on Broadway. I just wanted to play ball and go to the crib and chill. And that's what Brooklyn embodied."

Durant said he was attracted to Brooklyn because of the "chill" environment where he could just focus on basketball without having to deal with being a franchise savior.

It's likely the NBA will investigate any allegations of tampering against the Knicks and issue a fine if they were found to have illegally contacted Durant's family.