Golden State Warriors should fear Kevin Durant leaving for New York

The Golden State Warriors could lose Kevin Durant this offseason. The team likely to attract the superstar forward is the New York Knicks.

Per a recent report from Marc Stein of the New York Times, the threat for the New York Knicks to steal the Golden State Warriors forward has “never felt more real.”

Here’s how Stein phrased the report.

"I can also pass along that the threat of the Knicks’ persuading Durant to leave one of the most dominant teams in league history has never felt more real to the Warriors themselves."

This report should be worrisome for the Dubs.

While I’m not a huge believer in the importance of players liking tweets, Durant has been liking cryptic tweets around his exodus from the Golden State Warriors. Not a huge issue, these two coinciding should bring some fear into the hearts of Golden State’s diehard fans.

Once thought to have no chance to sign the four-time scoring champion and former MVP, the Knicks have since gone all-in, trading away their franchise cornerstone in an attempt to free up two max contract slots this offseason.

The team can now target players like Kyrie Irving, Kawhi Leonard and Klay Thompson to pair with Durant. However, a team with two superstars and a bunch of other average players doesn’t always guarantee success, so building a team around Durant would be just as important.

At the same time, New York will likely be the favorite to draft the walking highlight reel Zion Williamson this summer. Two superstars plus the player many have been dubbing the next LeBron could be enough to make the Knicks the favorite in the East.

Durant has been having a career-year in Golden State. He’s the NBA’s only player to average over 27 points, seven rebounds and six assists. He’s a legitimate superstar and has been for quite some time.

For the rest of the league, Durant leaving Golden State would even the playing field quite a bit. The Dubs would return to their pre-2016-2017 roster. A team led primarily by Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, a team that set an NBA record for wins in a season.

The Warriors loyal fanbase shouldn’t be worried about their dynasty though. The exodus of KD would, at the very least, guarantee that they can give Klay Thompson a max contract.