Kevin Durant Advised To Snub LeBron, Lakers, Join Knicks In 2020

Kevin Durant’s impending free agency in 2019 continues to be one of the most discussed topics in the NBA with many still trying to guess whether the small forward will re-sign with the Golden State Warriors or join another franchise as an unrestricted free agent.

The Warriors star is yet to give a clear indication as to his plans, but revealed recently that his main aim is to earn as much money as possible with his next deal. That points toward a new contract with his current employers who are the only team that can offer him a max five-year deal worth $221 million.

Durant will not be short of suitors if he decides to leave and it is clear that no amount of recruiting from other teams and players will sway his decision next summer. The Los Angeles Lakers are being touted as a potential destination, while there are also other franchises keen to sign the two-time NBA Finals winner and MVP.

Fox Sports’ Chris Broussard has urged Durant to snub the Lakers’ advances and stay with Warriors for at least one more season and try to win four straight titles. The reigning back-to-back champions are favored to win in 2019, and have the team that can dominate the NBA for years to come.

The small forward was criticized heavily after he decided to leave Oklahoma City Thunder and join Stephen Curry’s bandwagon in Oakland, but he has more than held his own by playing a key role in their last two title triumphs. The NBA expert is of the view that the criticism will stop if he leads the Warriors to four straight titles.

"This is how he should feel in his 12th year, nobody has to recruit him," Broussard told Fox Sports’ “First Things First”. "'I’ve won championships, I’ve won MVP. You can’t come to me and tell me what you can do for me'."

“Here's what I think KD should do, I hope he's watching. Assuming they win this championship, he should stay in Golden State one more year, play the first year in San Francisco and go for four straight titles. Nobody's done that since Bill Russell, 1966. Magic, Michael [Jordan], LeBron [James], none of them did that,” he added. “If you win four straight the ‘He joined a 73 win team’ goes out the window.”

Broussard also feels the New York Knicks can be a good fit for Durant in the future as it will give him an option to lead a team of his own. And recent reports suggested that they are one of the favorites to land the Warriors star when he becomes a free agent in 2019.

“It also gives him another year to look at the Knicks because there is legitimate interest there. He can see how the organisation gets itself together,” Broussard explained. “He can watch [Kristaps] Porzingis, can he stay healthy for a year? Does he look like the second guy he can play with?

“Do they get Zion [Williamson] in the draft? Does Kyrie [Irving] or Jimmy Butler go there? I think the landscape will be better if he stays one more year - and especially if he wins a ring,” he added.