Why Won't Kevin Durant Join LeBron James At Lakers? NBA Insider Explains

Will Kevin Durant leave the Golden State Warriors in 2019? Will he join the Los Angeles Lakers? Or will he choose to move to a team and create his own legacy without other household names? Those are the questions being bandied about this NBA offseason and there is no one clear answer.

The only thing that is almost certain is that the Warriors small forward will again enter free agency in 2019 after only signing a 1+1 deal with the Bay Area team this summer. Durant is keen to have control over his future and admitted it was best for him to sign a short-term deal.

The 29-year-old’s lack of long-term commitment has given rise to speculation about his future in Oakland, California, with many expecting him to leave next summer. He has been linked with moves to a number of franchises, but the Los Angeles Lakers and the New York Knicks are said to be the front runners.

Durant has been spotted on numerous occasions with LeBron James this summer giving rise to speculation he could join the three-time NBA champion in LA next season. But the Knicks are also keen on signing him to form a super team of their own alongside Lithuanian star Kristaps Porzingis.

According to Ramona Shelburne, an NBA insider, “narrative” will play a major role in Durant deciding the next course of action in his career in 2019. Many feel he could remain with the Warriors long-term, especially since they are favorites to win the NBA title yet again — they are the reigning back-to-back champions.

Another title will give Durant three NBA titles, the same as James, and if he adds to that, he has a possibility to eclipse the Lakers star as the greatest of the current generation and lift his stock in the all-time greatest list. Therefore, Shelburne has ruled out the possibility of him joining James in Los Angeles.

Another reason for him not joining the former Cleveland Cavaliers star is due to the fact that most of the hatred Durant gets is because of his move from the Oklahoma City Thunder to join the Stephen Curry bandwagon at Golden State. Therefore the forward joining another star’s team to play second fiddle is unlikely as it will come with another set of criticism.

There is no disrespect meant for Durant, as he has more than held his own with the Warriors, playing a key role in helping them win back-to-back NBA titles. In doing so, he was also crowned the NBA Finals MVP in 2017 and 2018.

“If KD were to leave, I think narrative has to play a factor in where he goes,” Shelburne told ESPN podcast “Mason and Ireland," as quoted on Clutch Points. “Joining up with LeBron [James] doesn’t really help his narrative, he has to go to somewhere like New York. I don’t know that he will leave Golden State, we will see."

“The one thing he gets knocked for is joining up with Steph [Curry]. He can’t leave that and go and play with LeBron,” the NBA insider added.