When Kevin Durant joined the Golden State Warriors in the 2016 offseason, it set off a chain of events that changed the league's landscape and formed one of the best teams in the history of the NBA.
The setup
The backdrop of KD’s historic move to the Bay was the 2016 NBA Playoffs. Two important things happened before the offseason. First, the Oklahoma City Thunder, Durant’s team at the time, lost to the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals even after building a 3-1 series lead. Second, that same Warriors team lost to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals after they built a 3-1 advantage themselves.
KD lost another chance at the title while the Warriors, who won a historic 73 wins in the regular season, surrendered their title to the King.
At that point in his career, Durant wanted to win. He was a Rookie of the Year, the youngest scoring champion, made numerous All-Star and All-NBA teams, and was the league MVP in 2014. A championship was the last elusive piece missing from his stacked resume.
The move
By the start of the 2016 offseason, it was already assumed that KD wanted a change of scenery. The only question was where. And the events that transpired in the Durant free agency bonanza have now morphed into their own lore and will forever be remembered as a crazy time on NBA Twitter.
Durant rented a house in the Hamptons to invite suitors and discuss destination options. Reporters and media people speculated which team the elite scorer would choose. Rumors circulated left and right. Who was KD meeting? Which team had the upper hand? Was he going to a rebuilding squad? Which contender was he leaning towards?
KD finally announced his move via The Players’ Tribune with the title “My Next Chapter.”
He wrote, “I am also at a point in my life where it is of equal importance to find an opportunity that encourages my evolution as a man: moving out of my comfort zone to a new city and community which offers the greatest potential for my contribution and personal growth. With this in mind, I have decided that I am going to join the Golden State Warriors.”
The move sent shockwaves across the NBA landscape. Here was Durant, one of the top five players in the league, opting to go to a championship contender. You have a 7-foot scoring dynamo joining the best shooting backcourt in league history, in an offensive system that’s wired to maximize their gunners.
The aftermath
It doesn’t take an NBA expert to figure out that if you add Durant to an already potent lineup of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Andre Igoudala, that team can win a whole bunch of games.
And that’s exactly what they did.
The Warriors, with KD in tow, went on to overpower the league for the next two years. They won back-to-back titles with Durant winning Finals MVP in both series against LeBron and the Cavs.
Golden State had the league in the palm of its hand up until the 2019 NBA Finals. Thompson and Durant suffered career-altering injuries with the latter enduring an Achilles injury. During the offseason, Durant eventually moved on to the Brooklyn Nets, ending a dominant two-year run with Curry and the Warriors.
It’s been three seasons since KD left the Warriors and six years since he made that decision at the Hamptons. LeBron won a title with the Los Angeles Lakers, his team after his second run with the Cavs. Curry and Thompson returned to the top, winning their fourth championship after the 2022 season. Durant, meanwhile, formed another super team with Kyrie Irving and James Harden but that was incredibly short-lived with Harden moving to Philadelphia.
Years have passed but the 2016 offseason and its subsequent aftermath are still felt, especially when you talk about players’ legacies. LeBron won his fourth title with the Lakers but what if he got one more during his time with the Cavs if KD didn’t go to the Warriors? Would the King even consider leaving Cleveland in the first place?
Curry’s place in NBA history has also been a point of contention with pundits. How did KD’s transfer to Golden State affect his legacy? How important was it for him to win the last NBA championship “on his own”?
For Durant, he’ll forever be a two-time champion with the Warriors. However, does this hurt his ranking alongside the all-time greats? When he retires, even if he wins one more title, how will the basketball world embrace him?
At the end of the day, at least we’ll always have that wild 2016 free agency. The excitement and anticipation were palpable for the league and its fans. The jokes and the memes from the Players’ Tribune announcement were pretty good too. Plus, we saw one of the greatest teams ever formed with KD and the Warriors. And we might not see that kind of super team ever again.
