Kevin Durant Confirms He’s Not Going Anywhere In Free Agency

Asked if his 2018 free agency is the foregone conclusion that 2017’s foray onto the open market was, Kevin Durant has confirmed that he’s not going anywhere this summer. As Anthony Slater of The Athletic writes, Durant said today that he’s 100% sure he’ll be back with the Warriors for next season.

Durant, in his second season with the Warriors, has already signed two contracts with the team and may sign a third this summer, since it has made sense for him to go year to year. Durant’s current deal includes a $26.25MM player option for 2018/19, but he could make more money by opting out and signing a new contract. While the reigning Finals MVP knows he’ll remain a Warrior, he isn’t sure what sort of deal he’ll sign – in terms of years and money – if he opts out.

“Who knows? Who knows how I’ll feel? Who knows what’ll happen, what we’ll need at that time?” said Durant, who took a discount last summer that helped the Warriors re-sign Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala. “But like I said, money is not my concern, I’m concerned with my joy and happiness. I made so much money — to be honest, I could live what I’ve made off forever.”

Despite the fact that he has gone year to year with the Warriors, Durant said today that it feels like he has been on a long-term deal with the team. Golden State will have Durant’s Early Bird rights this coming offseason, giving the franchise a little more flexibility to lock up the former No. 2 pick to a longer-term contract. It’s not clear whether or not that will happen, but the star forward suggested that sort of deal is probably in his future, per Slater.

“Financially, obviously, what I wanted to do last year, it made sense. Well, the last two years, it made sense to do the one-year deal,” Durant said. “I’m sure here soon I’ll want to sign a long-term deal just to feel stable. But I’m enjoying every moment of it, so I’m not trying to look too far down the line.”

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