Golden State Warriors: Kevin Durant will be back
To the surprise of absolutely no one, Kevin Durant will opt out of his deal and then re-sign a new one with the Golden State Warriors.
The Golden State Warriors are living in a world of one-year deal with superstar free agents. It’s the nature of the business when the salary cap is escalating each season and stars know they can make more by signing short term deals one step at a time. That is the case with Kevin Durant.
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On Monday, ESPN’s Chris Haynes officially reported that Durant will be opting out of his current deal and signing yet another one-year deal just a shade below the max. For Durant, he will be making more than the $28 million he was set to make but won’t be making the full amount he could be.
As Haynes notes, it’s so that the Warriors will have the financial room to use their bird rights on free agent forward Andre Iguodala. With Iguodala set to have plenty of suitors and will get a lot of money on the open market, this will allow the team to go over the cap and spend what it takes to keep him in a Warriors uniform.
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Of all the free agency news for the Warriors, this is likely the smallest of news despite involving the biggest of names. Durant was always set to return and everyone knew that this was going to be the plan from the very beginning.
It also speaks to Durant being a team player by willing to take a little less so that Golden State can work to keep their core together and have Iguodala in a Warriors uniform for many more years should he re-sign with the team. This is just the first of what should be a busy offseason for the team looking to stay on top.