Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Warriors Lose Durant, Then Grab Another All-Star
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
July 1, 2019

Share

With Kevin Durant heading to the Brooklyn Nets, the Golden State Warriors quickly swapped one NBA All-Star for another.

That keeps the Golden State core of Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson intact. The rest of the roster, including D’Angelo Russell, is likely a work in progress.
Hours after Durant confirmed Sunday on Instagram he was leaving the Warriors after three seasons, Golden State reportedly set up a trade for Brooklyn All-Star D’Angelo Russell. The sign-and-trade deal was first reported by The Athletic and confirmed by ESPN.
To make salary room for Russell, the Warriors will trade veteran and 2015 NBA Finals MVP Andre Iguodala to the Memphis Grizzlies, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported. The Warriors also reached an agreement with Klay Thompson for a five-year, $190 million deal, the San Francisco Chronicle and New York Times reported.
That keeps the Golden State core of Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Thompson intact. The rest of the roster, including Russell, is likely a work in progress. Thompson is expected to miss some or all of next season because of an ACL injury suffered in the NBA Finals.

Russell an All-Star for Brooklyn

Russell, a point guard, was the No. 2 selection in the 2015 draft, going to the Los Angeles Lakers. He was traded to Brooklyn in 2017. This past season, he averaged 21 points per game and made 37% of his three-point shots.
Durant’s decision was announced at the start of the NBA free agency period on the Instagram page for The Boardroom, an online series looking at sports business produced by Durant and business partner Rich Kleiman.
Durant won titles with Golden State in 2017 and ’18 then was injured for much of the postseason this year as the team lost the NBA Finals in six games to the Toronto Raptors.
A ruptured right Achilles tendon could keep him out the entire next season, and whenever he returns it will be in the Brooklyn black.
And he’ll be joined by Kyrie Irving and DeAndre Jordan, his 2016 U.S. Olympic teammates who also agreed to deals with the Nets on Sunday.

Unclear When Durant Can Return

ESPN first reported Durant’s decision, saying he had agreed to a four-year deal worth $164 million. Durant could have gotten five years and about $221 million to remain with the Warriors.
Durant, a 10-time All-Star who just completed his 12th NBA season, was leading all postseason scorers at 34.2 points per game when he strained his right calf on May 8 in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Rockets. He had seven 30-point performances during the recent playoffs.
It’s unclear how he will play whenever he can return, but the Nets were willing to take a chance with a team on the rise.
Brooklyn finished 42-40 this season and lost in the first round of the playoffs, then got a huge victory Sunday when it beat out the Warriors, New York Knicks and Los Angeles Clippers for Durant.
Durant, who grew up in the Washington area and spent one college season at Texas, played his first year with the Seattle SuperSonics before they departed for Oklahoma City, where Durant played eight seasons with the Thunder before joining the Warriors in 2016.
He was heavily criticized for that move, seen as taking an easy route by joining a team that had just won an NBA-record 73 games. But it worked out for Durant and the Warriors, as he was the NBA Finals MVP in their championships in both 2017 and 2018.
This season was filled with talk of his future — sometimes to Durant’s annoyance — though for much of the season it was focused on the Knicks if he decided to leave. But the Nets became a more attractive option with young talent that should help them be competitive next season even while Durant recovers.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

NASA and the Defense Department Rely on SpaceX in So Many Ways

DON'T MISS

Whooping Cough Is Surging. Do You Need Another Shot?

DON'T MISS

Rancho Cucamonga Prepares for First US Bullet Train Hub in 2028

DON'T MISS

8 Ways Musk and Trump Could Inflict Pain on Each Other

DON'T MISS

Fresno Unified’s Leadership Team Is Double the Size of a Peer District With Better Test Scores

DON'T MISS

Sunday’s Life Jacket Giveaway Promotes Safety on Fresno Area Waters

DON'T MISS

D-Day Veterans Return to Normandy to Mark 81st Anniversary of Landings

DON'T MISS

Lambda Legal, a Nonprofit Supporting LGBTQ+ Rights, Exceeded Fundraising Goal by $105M

DON'T MISS

Jury Awards California Prosecutor $3 Million After She Says She Was Forced Out of Her Position

DON'T MISS

How Trump’s Pick for Surgeon General Uses Her Big Online Following to Make Money

UP NEXT

French Open: No. 2 Coco Gauff Faces No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the Women’s Final

UP NEXT

Aaron Rodgers Ends Months-Long Dance With Steelers by Agreeing to a 1-Year Deal

UP NEXT

Inside the Comeback: How the Pacers Pulled Off a Stunner in Game 1 of the NBA Finals

UP NEXT

Conforto Comes Through, Dodgers Rally in 8th for Victory Abetted by Mets Fielding Mishap

UP NEXT

Ray Strikes Out 9 and Becomes NL’s First 8-Game Winner as Giants Beat Padres

UP NEXT

Derek Carr Explains Mysterious Retirement. He Didn’t Want to ‘Just Take the Saints’ Money’

UP NEXT

Alonso Muscles Up With 2 HRs, 5 RBIs as Mets Belt Dodgers

UP NEXT

Giants Score 6 Runs! Ramos Delivers Key Double in Win Over Padres

UP NEXT

International Basketball Comes to Fresno: Armenia vs. Costa Rica

UP NEXT

Machado and Padres Rally to Beat Giants in 10 Innings Again

8 Ways Musk and Trump Could Inflict Pain on Each Other

13 minutes ago

Fresno Unified’s Leadership Team Is Double the Size of a Peer District With Better Test Scores

1 hour ago

Sunday’s Life Jacket Giveaway Promotes Safety on Fresno Area Waters

2 hours ago

D-Day Veterans Return to Normandy to Mark 81st Anniversary of Landings

2 hours ago

Lambda Legal, a Nonprofit Supporting LGBTQ+ Rights, Exceeded Fundraising Goal by $105M

2 hours ago

Jury Awards California Prosecutor $3 Million After She Says She Was Forced Out of Her Position

2 hours ago

How Trump’s Pick for Surgeon General Uses Her Big Online Following to Make Money

3 hours ago

Gaza Marks the Start of Eid With Outdoor Prayers in the Rubble and Food Growing Ever Scarcer

3 hours ago

Wall Street Gains Ground Following a Solid Jobs Report

3 hours ago

Texas Tech’s NiJaree Canady Bounces Back in Game 2 After Game 1 Heartbreak

3 hours ago

NASA and the Defense Department Rely on SpaceX in So Many Ways

In 2006, a small, little-known company named Space Exploration Technologies Corp. — SpaceX, for short — won a NASA contract to ferry cargo a...

3 minutes ago

3 minutes ago

NASA and the Defense Department Rely on SpaceX in So Many Ways

9 minutes ago

Whooping Cough Is Surging. Do You Need Another Shot?

13 minutes ago

Rancho Cucamonga Prepares for First US Bullet Train Hub in 2028

13 minutes ago

8 Ways Musk and Trump Could Inflict Pain on Each Other

1 hour ago

Fresno Unified’s Leadership Team Is Double the Size of a Peer District With Better Test Scores

2 hours ago

Sunday’s Life Jacket Giveaway Promotes Safety on Fresno Area Waters

2 hours ago

D-Day Veterans Return to Normandy to Mark 81st Anniversary of Landings

2 hours ago

Lambda Legal, a Nonprofit Supporting LGBTQ+ Rights, Exceeded Fundraising Goal by $105M

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend