Nick Wass/Associated Press

Amick: Kevin Durant's Team Talking in 'Pretty Alarming Terms' on Joining Knicks

Kyle Newport

Golden State Warriors superstar Kevin Durant has yet to give any indications as to what he might do this summer, but a reporter close to the situation believes this could be the former NBA MVP's last season in the Bay Area. 

Sam Amick of The Athletic went on FS1's The Herd With Colin Cowherd on Wednesday and revealed that the New York Knicks should be viewed as a realistic landing spot:

"Right now, I do," Amick said when asked if he saw Durant leaving as a free agent this offseason. "... His people have gone around the league and talked in pretty alarming terms about the New York possibility. That's why we're talking about it so much."

It was just last month that Amick reported the Knicks liked their chances of landing the 10-time All-Star.

"Some rival executives even reported that Knicks officials themselves have been expressing a very high level of optimism on this front," Amick wrote on Jan. 31.

That came after New York traded the face of its franchise, Kristaps Porzingis, to the Dallas Mavericks. That trade helped clear enough cap room for max salary slots this summer.

KD-to-New York rumors have persisted for months, as Knicks fans put up a banner for him last year. Durant has not fueled the fire by any means, though. In fact, he tried to distance himself from those rumors earlier this month by saying the Porzingis trade had nothing to do with him (starting at 1:09 mark):

As Amick noted, though, Durant's business manager, Rich Kleiman, is a lifelong New York fan and once tweeted "Imma run the Knicks one day." Amick added that rival executives expect the Knicks would offer Kleiman a position within the organization in order to land Durant.

The Athletic's Frank Isola reported on Tuesday that the Warriors "have no idea" what Durant—who holds a $31.5 million player option for 2019-20—is going to do this summer. However, an early season feud between Durant and Draymond Green led to increased speculation this would be Durant's final season with Golden State.

Per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, Green questioned Durant's commitment to the team in that rift.

Prior to joining Golden State, Durant had yet to add a championship to his resume, reaching just one Finals in nine seasons with the Seattle SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder. In two-plus seasons with the Warriors, he has already added a pair of rings and two Finals MVPs as well. The team sits atop the Western Conference at the All-Star break at 41-16.

   

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