10 bold predictions for 2019 NBA free agency
8. The Golden State Warriors will keep both Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson
Klay Thompson is pretty much a done deal, since the Golden State Warriors will offer a five-year, $190 million max deal at the onset of free agency, according to ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski. After three titles, five All-Star appearances, two All-NBA selections and those two free throws on a torn ACL in Game 6 of the Finals, anything less than the max would be criminal.
Re-signing the other Splash Brother is hardly a bold prediction, but the Dubs keeping both Klay and KD is where things get dicey. We’ve already laid out the case for Durant re-signing with the Warriors, but to sum up: That Achilles tear changed everything.
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Other teams will still be willing to offer him a four-year, $164 million max deal, but that’s one year and $57 million less than the Dubs can — and reportedly will — extend his way. The injury deprived the Dubs of a three-peat, leaving everyone with a feeling of unfinished business, but it also showed everyone how quickly one injury can change everything.
Bearing that in mind, wouldn’t it make sense for KD to spend his redshirt season with a training staff he’s familiar with? Wouldn’t it make more sense to press pause on a dynasty and come back hungrier than ever in 2020-21? Wouldn’t his absence and a year of a wide open league kill off some of the fatigue with the Warriors’ unfairness and actually have people excited about his return, even if he stayed?
Achilles injuries are notoriously hard to come back from, and being offered a $50 million salary in his age-35 season is an absurdly difficult proposition to turn down. That’s security no matter what happens as he rehabs from such a debilitating injury.
The fans who once called him snake just want to see him return healthy now, the Dubs are more motivated than ever to keep the dream alive and neither the Nets, Knicks nor Clippers would offer the same opportunity to contend immediately upon his return. The Nets are sneaking in there, but the Dubs just make more sense.