Kevin Durant on Response to Knicks Rumors: It Was Good to Get That off My Chest

Kevin Durant isn't backing down from his criticism of beat writers, telling ESPN's Get Up that expressing his frustrations with coverage of his impending free agency was a good thing.

"As a player, knowing I have to talk to media, if I get an opportunity to talk to media, I want to give the fans my perspective on the game, not about business," Durant said. "...I just want [beat writers] to be truthful, especially if they're going to walk up to me in the locker room after games then go behind my back and write stuff like that. At least come talk to me. It was good to get that off my chest.”

Durant, who had been silent with the media, unleashed his frustrations last week regarding rampant rumors of his desire to sign with the Knicks. He told gathered reporters to "grow up" and denied his impending free agency had anything to do with the Knicks' trade of Kristaps Porzingis.

“I have nothing to do with the Knicks,” Durant told reporters. “I don’t know who traded Porzingis. They got nothing to do with me. I’m trying to play basketball. Y’all come in here every day, ask me about free agency, ask my teammates, my coaches. You rile up the fans about it. Let us play basketball. That’s all I’m saying. And now, when I don’t wanna talk to y’all, it’s a problem with me.

“Come on, man. Grow up. Grow up. Yeah, you—grow up. Come on, bro. I come here and go to work every day. I don’t cause no problems. I play the right way, or I try to play the right way. I try to be the best player I can be every possession. What’s the problem? What am I doing to y’all?”

Durant was particularly angered by an article from Ethan Strauss of The Athletic, which stated "insiders around the league think Kevin Durant is leaving the Warriors for the Knicks." The article then detailed the behind-the-scenes workings of the Warriors and used sources to delve into Durant's perceived thinking.

Of course, it's impossible to not see the writing on the wall. The Knicks did not trade Kristaps Porzingis, their most promising young player since Patrick Ewing, to Dallas for cap space in order to sign Nikola Vucevic. They have their eyes on starry names like Durant and Kyrie Irving.

Durant's business partner Rich Kleiman tweeted last year he wants to run the Knicks someday. You don't even have to be well-sourced in the league to see some level of correlation here. Durant is going to explore all of his options this summer, and the Knicks are going to be at or near the top of his list of potential suitors. 

The constant questioning from reporters understandably weighs on Durant, but his future is the biggest question of the NBA offseason.