Rick Welts Comments on Signing Kevin Durant, Star's Future with Warriors

Well over a week after the Golden State Warriors officially introduced the 2013-14 MVP as a member, team president Rick Welts is still surprised the franchise managed to land Kevin Durant this offseason.

In an interview on CBS Sports Radio's Tiki and Tierney on Friday, Welts opened up about how Golden State's front office was feeling before Durant made his decision:  

"

Well, I think we had hope. We, like every other team, probably didn’t think it was going to happen, and I can assure you we had no indication it was going to happen until the phone rang at 7:30 in the morning in [general manager] Bob Myers' cabin on Lake Tahoe and Kevin called to give us his decision. I think there was a lot of screaming and yelling going on in the Myers' cabin at that point in time.

"

As was the case with LeBron James' return to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Durant signed a two-year deal with the Warriors that allows him to opt out after the first year. Technically, the seven-time All-Star could bolt the Bay Area next summer, but few expect him to do so.

During his introductory press conference back on July 7, Durant confirmed he intends to stay with the Warriors for the long haul, per USA Today's Sam Amick: "I plan on being here. I don't want to go through that again."

Welts, however, knows nothing is assured:

"

There's no commitment from Kevin. He signed a one-year contract with a player option. So I think the hope and expectation is there's a business reason for doing that more than there is a basketball reason for doing that. We've got to be a place that is as good as he thought it was when he selected the Warriors over the other options that he had. I think we're going through a really interesting time in our league. We're all trying to figure out what the new world is going to look like.

"

It's not outside the realm of possibility to envision the 2016-17 season going so poorly for the Warriors that Durant begins second-guessing his decision to sign there; some teams have had trouble finding chemistry with new additions.

The chances that happens are slim, though. Durant is joining a team that won an NBA-record 73 regular-season games and was one win away from a second straight NBA title in 2015-16. Golden State already looked to be a budding dynasty before his arrival, and adding a marquee talent as good as Durant should make the team even more dominant.

Stephen Curry's impending free agency complicates Durant's future a little bit, but with the league's salary cap expected to climb to $102 million for 2017-18, per ESPN.com's Brian Windhorst, the Warriors should have more than enough cap space to retain both stars.