Windhorst: Warriors in 'Scramble Mode' with Kevin Durant; Open to Sign-and-Trade

On the heels of Kevin Durant declining his $31.5 million player option for 2019-20 on Wednesday to become a free agent, the Golden State Warriors are reportedly thinking of ways to avoid losing him for nothing.

Appearing Thursday on ESPN's Get Up!, NBA insider Brian Windhorst reported that Golden State would be open to a sign-and-trade:

"My sense is that the Warriors are in the scramble mode to do anything that they can to either keep Kevin or not lose him for nothing. The last thing that the Warriors want is for him to just go sign with the Nets or sign with the Knicks. So in addition to offering him the five-year contract and hoping that he will either stay with them or be willing to rehab with them and then be traded, the Warriors are wide-open to considering sign-and-trade scenarios."

Windhorst noted that while Golden State may not get any top-level assets in return, the acquisition of a hefty trade exception would greatly benefit the Warriors:

"They would love, let's say Kevin wants to go to the Nets, they would love to do a sign-and-trade with the Nets. Now you might say, 'Well, what would they get back?' Well, what they could do is they could get back a trade exception, where you'd get a $35 million basically gift certificate that they could then use to go get other players, which they are going to need.

"You may not get any type of standout player back, but they have no functional way to improve their team because they don't have any roster space; they're not gonna have any salary-cap space if he leaves. So the Warriors really want to work alongside Kevin Durant over the next week, whether it's to keep him, whether it's to help him go elsewhere. Now, the Nets wouldn't really be incentivized—or the Knicks or the Clippers—to help the Warriors, so that may not end up happening."

Durant holds all the cards and may want to consider a sign-and-trade since it would allow him to sign a five-year max deal, whereas leaving the Warriors to sign with a team like the Nets, Knicks or Clippers could only yield a four-year max deal.

KD is expected to miss most or all of the 2019-20 season after suffering a torn Achilles in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

Kevin Durant Goes to the Locker Room After Suffering an Apparent Non-contact Injury on Lower Leg

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ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Wednesday the Nets, Knicks and Clippers are all under consideration for Durant, as is a return to the Warriors.

After spending the first nine seasons of his career with the Seattle SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder, Durant signed with the Warriors in 2016, and he has made a massive impact. In each of his three seasons with the Dubs, the team reached the NBA Finals.

Durant was named Finals MVP in both 2017 and 2018, but he appeared in just one game during the 2019 Finals because of injury.

The Warriors could find themselves in a dire situation next season with Durant injured and possibly set to leave. Klay Thompson is also a free agent, and he could miss all of 2019-20 after suffering a torn ACL in Game 6 of the NBA Finals. And DeMarcus Cousins could also bolt after one year in Golden State.

That means the Warriors will be limited to Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala as their core players unless they can acquire some means to add other pieces. Trading Durant and securing a trade exception is perhaps the best way to do so.