Report: Kevin Durant Told Russell Westbrook He Wasn't Leaving Thunder in 2016
Before leaving the Oklahoma City Thunder to sign with the Golden State Warriors in 2016, Kevin Durant reportedly told Russell Westbrook and other OKC teammates that he planned to re-sign with the team.
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith said the following on Wednesday's episode of First Take regarding KD's actions prior to signing with the Warriors: "The night before Kevin Durant flew to the Hamptons, Durant had dinner with Westbrook, Nick Collison and possibly Royal Ivey and told them he wasn't leaving."
Smith later added that Durant reached out to him to say the story was untrue, but Smith noted that he was standing by his "multiple" sources.
Durant spent three seasons with the Warriors, reaching three NBA Finals and winning two championships and two NBA Finals MVP awards.
This offseason, Durant reportedly agreed to a deal with the Brooklyn Nets, where he will join forces with Kyrie Irving.
KD spent the first nine seasons of his NBA career with the Seattle/OKC franchise, and he was teammates with Westbrook for eight seasons.
During that time, Durant and Westbrook helped the Thunder become perennial contenders, reaching the NBA Finals once and the Western Conference Finals on three other occasions. In the final season Durant and Westbrook played together, they pushed the Warriors to Game 7 of the 2016 Western Conference Finals.
After Durant left, Westbrook didn't do much to hide the fact that he was upset with KD's decision. One of the biggest storylines in the NBA during Durant's first season in Golden State was Westbrook's icy attitude toward his former teammate.
Things have since thawed, possibly due to the fact that the Thunder acquired another superstar to play alongside Westbrook in Paul George. OKC hasn't been the same without Durant, though, as it has experienced three straight first-round exits in the playoffs.
Durant's decision to leave the Warriors in free agency hasn't been met with anywhere near as much vitriol as his departure from OKC.
That is likely due to a combination of factors, including the fact that he won two titles with the Warriors. Also, Durant could miss the entire 2019-20 season after suffering a torn Achilles during the NBA Finals.
There is no guarantee that Durant will be the same player when he returns, but the Nets look strong on paper for 2020-21 and beyond, and KD will have a chance to take his third different team to the NBA Finals.
