Warriors May Offer Durant ‘Delayed Sign-And-Trade’

The Warriors are considering a “delayed sign-and-trade” arrangement with Kevin Durant that would let him maximize his earnings and allow him to be traded once his ruptured Achilles is fully healed, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said this morning on “Get Up!” (video link)

Durant can lock in a five-year, $220MM contract by re-signing with Golden State, about $57MM more that he would earn in a four-year deal with anyone else.

“Let him rehab and then work with him to be traded,” Windhorst explained. “Potentially to New York, potentially to somewhere else. Be their way to sort of take care of him monetarily after what he just went through and also protect the franchise to get some assets. If that happens, the Knicks would be in tremendous position to get back into it because they’re going to have these young assets plus cap space.”

Windhorst called it “a last-ditch” effort on the Warriors’ part to avoid losing Durant in free agency with no return. He admits it would take a strong level of trust on Durant’s part to agree to such a deal, but adds that the Warriors have promised to help facilitate a trade to wherever he wants to go.

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