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Kevin Durant Agrees to 4-Year, $198 Million Contract Extension with Nets
Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant agreed to sign a four-year, $198 million contract extension Saturday, agent Rich Kleiman told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The Nets confirmed the deal Sunday:
Durant was eligible to become a free agent after next season. He originally signed a four-year, $164.3 million deal with the Nets in 2019.
The future Hall of Famer sat out the entire 2019-20 season recovering from a ruptured Achilles and returned in 2020-21 looking every bit like his former self. He averaged 26.9 points, 7.1 rebounds and 5.6 assists but was limited to 35 regular-season games because of injuries and a COVID-19 diagnosis.
The Nets' next order of business may be offering extensions to James Harden and Kyrie Irving, who each have player options for the 2022-23 season. Harden's next contract could pay him upward of $50 million per season, while Irving's max extension would be the same as Durant's.
It's unclear if Harden or Irving has an interest in matching Durant's long-term commitment to Brooklyn.
The Nets are facing a total payroll and luxury-tax payment of $296 million next season, per ESPN's Bobby Marks. That number will likely only rise in future seasons provided the Big Three stick together.
