After keeping NBA fans waiting, Kevin Durant has announced he’ll leave the Oklahoma City Thunder and join the Golden State Warriors.
The deal with Golden State is for two years, worth a total of $54 million — with an opt-out clause in the second year, based on reports.
The Oklahoma City Thunder lobbied hard to keep Durant, with pitches both before and after all his other meetings.
The team also made a big trade just before free agency opened to surround him with more talent in a bid to convince Durant the window for a title in Oklahoma City was still wide open.
But the lure of creating a big four in Oakland, with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green apparently won over Durant.Kevin Durant Shocks NBA And Signs With Golden State Warriors.
Durant, an investor and “deputy publisher” at The Players’ Tribune, published a short personal blog announcing his decision on Monday.
ABOUT THE GREAT MR. KEVIN WAYNE DURANT:
Kevin Wayne Durant (born September 29, 1988) is an American professional basketball player with the Golden State Warriors. He has played the small forward position for the Oklahoma City Thunder, formerly the Seattle SuperSonics. On July 4, 2016, he announced that he would sign with the Warriors.[1] Durant has won an NBA Most Valuable Player Award, four NBA scoring titles, the NBA Rookie of the Year Award, and an Olympic gold medal. He has also been selected to six All-NBA teams and seven All-Star teams.
Durant was a heavily recruited high school prospect. He attended the University of Texas for one season of college basketball, where he won numerous year-end awards and became the first ever freshman to be named Naismith College Player of the Year. In the 2007 NBA draft, he was selected second overall by the Seattle SuperSonics. After his rookie season, the team relocated to Oklahoma City and became the Thunder. Durant helped lead Oklahoma City to the 2012 NBA Finals, losing to the Miami Heat in five games.
Durant was born on September 29, 1988 in Washington, D.C. to Wanda (née Durant) and Wayne Pratt. When Durant was an infant, his father deserted the family; Wanda and Wayne eventually divorced, and Durant’s grandmother Barbara Davis helped raise him. By age 13, his father re-entered his life and traveled the country with him to basketball tournaments. Durant has one sister, Brianna, and two brothers, Tony and Rayvonne. Growing up, Durant wanted to play for his favorite team, the Toronto Raptors, which included his favorite player, Vince Carter. A basketball player from his earliest days, Durant played Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball for several teams in the Maryland area, and was teammates with future NBA players Michael Beasley, Greivis Vasquez, and Ty Lawson, the former of whom Durant remains friends with to this day. During this time, Durant began wearing #35 as his jersey number in honor of his AAU coach Charles Craig, who was murdered at the age of 35.
Off the court, Durant is known for his kind demeanor toward fans and active philanthropy in the Oklahoma City area. In 2012, he tried his hand at acting, starring in his first feature film, Thunderstruck.
After playing two years of high school basketball at National Christian Academy and one year at Oak Hill Academy, Durant transferred to Montrose Christian School for his senior year, growing five inches before the start of the season and beginning the year with a height of six feet, seven inches. Prior to the start of the season, he committed to the University of Texas. At the conclusion of the year, he was named the Washington Post All Met Basketball Player of the Year, as well as the Most Valuable Player of the 2006 McDonald’s All American Game. He was widely regarded as the second-best high school prospect of 2006.
For the 2006–07 college season, Durant averaged 25.8 points, 11.1 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game and led all freshman in scoring. The Longhorns finished the year with a 25–10 record overall and a 12–4 record in conference.Awarded a fourth seed in the NCAA Tournament, Texas won their first round match-up against New Mexico State but were upset in the second round by USC despite a 30 point and 9 rebound performance from Durant.Durant earned a number of season-end awards and honors, including being named the Naismith College Player of the Year, becoming the first ever freshman to win the award. On April 11, he officially declared for the 2007 NBA draft. His jersey was later retired by the Longhorns.
Durant was selected with the second overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft by the Seattle SuperSonics. In his first career game, he registered 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals against the Denver Nuggets. On November 16, he made the first game-winning shot of his career in a game against the Atlanta Hawks. At the conclusion of the season, he was named the NBA Rookie of the Year behind averages of 20.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game. He joined Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James as the only teenagers in league history to average at least 20 points per game over an entire season.
Following Durant’s debut season, the SuperSonics relocated from Seattle to Oklahoma City, becoming the Thunder and switching to new colors blue, orange, and yellow. The team also drafted UCLA guard Russell Westbrook, who would form an All-Star combination with Durant in later years. At the 2009 NBA All-Star Weekend, Durant set a Rookie Challenge record with 46 points. By the conclusion of the year, he had raised his scoring average by five points from the prior season to 25.3 points per game, and was considered a strong candidate for the Most Improved Player Award, eventually finishing third in the voting.
During the 2009–10 season, Durant was selected to his first NBA All-Star Game. Behind his play, the Thunder improved their record by 27 wins from the previous year and defied expectations to make the playoffs. With a scoring average of 30.1 points per game, he became the youngest-ever NBA scoring champion and was selected to his first All-NBA team. In his playoff debut, he scored 24 points in a Game 1 loss against the Los Angeles Lakers.Oklahoma City would go on to lose the series in six games, but the team’s performance led sports analysts to label them as an upcoming title contender.
Prior to the start of the 2010–11 season, Durant announced via Twitter that he had signed a five-year contract extension with the Thunder worth approximately $86 million. For the second consecutive year, he led the NBA in scoring, averaging 27.7 points a game. Behind his leadership, the Thunder won 55 games and earned the fourth seed in the Western Conference. In the playoffs, Oklahoma City defeated the Denver Nuggets and Memphis Grizzlies en route to a Conference Finals match-up versus the Dallas Mavericks, losing in five games.
On February 19 of the lockout-shortened 2011–12 season, Durant recorded his first career 50 point game, scoring 51 points against the Denver Nuggets. At the All-Star Game, he scored 36 points and was awarded his first NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award. He finished the year with a scoring average of 28 points per game, representing his third straight scoring title. Behind his play, the Thunder won 47 games and entered the playoffs as the Western Conference’s second seed. In Game 1 of the first round against the Mavericks, Durant hit a game-winner with 1.5 seconds remaining. Oklahoma City would go on to defeat Dallas, the Lakers, and the San Antonio Spurs before losing to the Miami Heat in the Finals. For the series, Durant led all players with 30.6 points per game, doing so on a 54.8 shooting rate.
With a scoring average of 28.1 points per game to finish the 2012–13 season, Durant failed to defend his scoring title; however, with a 51 percent shooting rate, a 41.6 percent three point shooting rate, and a 90.5 free throw shooting rate, he became the youngest player in NBA history to join the 50–40–90 club. Finishing the year with a 60–22 record, Oklahoma City earned the first seed in the Western Conference. In the first round of the playoffs against the Houston Rockets, Russell Westbrook tore his meniscus, forcing him to miss the remainder of the postseason. Without Westbrook, Durant was given more responsibility, averaging a career-high 30.8 points per game throughout the playoffs, but Oklahoma City were eventually eliminated in the second round by the Memphis Grizzlies.
In January of the 2013–14 season, Durant averaged 35.9 points per game while scoring 30 or more points in 12 straight games, including a career-high 54 points against the Golden State Warriors. The Thunder finished the season with 59 wins and Durant was voted the NBA Most Valuable Player behind averages of 32 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game. In the first round of the playoffs, he had a series of inconsistent performances against the Grizzlies and the Thunder fell behind 3–2, prompting The Oklahoman to dub him “Mr. Unreliable”. He responded by scoring 36 points in a Game 6 victory. Oklahoma City eventually eliminated Memphis and the Los Angeles Clippers before losing to the eventual champion Spurs in the Conference Finals.
Durant describes himself as a “high school kid” and enjoys playing video games in his spare time. He is very close with his mother, Wanda, a relationship that was detailed in the Lifetime movie The Real MVP: The Wanda Pratt Story. A Christian, Durant goes to chapel before every game and has religious tattoos on his stomach, wrist, and back. He owns several properties in the Oklahoma City area and listed his primary residence, located in the affluent Club Villa neighborhood, for sale for $1.95 million in 2013. That same year, he opened a restaurant, KD’s Southern Cuisine, in the Bricktown neighborhood and became engaged to Monica Wright, a WNBA player. In 2016, he was a credentialed photographer for the The Players’ Tribune at Super Bowl 50.
Durant was formerly represented by agents Aaron Goodwin and Rob Pelinka. He left Pelinka in 2013 and signed with the Roc Nation group, headed by Jay-Z. Durant has endorsement deals with Nike, Sprint, Gatorade, Panini, General Electric, and 2K Sports. In 2012, he tried his hand at acting, appearing in the children’s film Thunderstruck. In 2013, he earned $35 million, making him the fourth-highest-earning basketball player that year. In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Durant claimed that, despite his high earnings potential, “global marketing and all that stuff” does not interest him.
One of the most popular players in the league, Durant’s jersey regularly ranks as one of the NBA’s best-selling and he is consistently one of the top All-Star vote-getters. He has developed a reputation for his kind demeanor; in 2013, Foot Locker released a series of commercials calling him the “nicest guy in the NBA”, and he has become a beloved figure in Oklahoma City, known for his “nice escapades” toward the Thunder’s staff. In 2014, he partnered with KIND snacks and launched StrongAndKind.com to show “being kind is not a sign of weakness.”
Throughout his career, Durant has participated in philanthropic causes. In 2013, he pledged $1 million to the American Red Cross for the victims of the 2013 Moore tornado. His generosity inspired the Thunder and Nike to match his donation. He is also a spokesperson for the Washington, D.C. branch of P’Tones Records, a nationwide non-profit after-school music program.
CONGRATULATIONS TO MR. KEVIN DURANT, GREAT LUCK GOING FORWARD.
