Kevin Durant's reason for leaving the Golden State Warriors is starting to come to light days after he signed a contract with the Brooklyn Nets during his free agency. Different speculations surfaced about his decision including reports that Durant felt unacknowledged in the Bay Area because of the cherished Steph Curry. On the latest episode of Bill Simons Podcast, he said that the Warriors, including Curry, took personally how Durant left the team.
Reports claimed that Durant didn't see Coach Steve Kerr personally before signing the deal with the Brooklyn Nets. Everyone has their speculations, and all are in search of the truth.
Curry headed back to New York from Shanghai, China to meet with Durant after he announced his decision. Reports said that Curry intended to meet Durant to show respect instead of recruiting him back. The rumors reported by Simons in the episode conflicted with the previous story.
Simmons said that the Warriors still feel like they have a puncher's chance to get him. The possibility is enough that Curry is going to fly back from Shanghai to New York and land on Sunday night, right after free agency starts, and he has this determined time with Durant to just talk with him and put a bow on everything. According to reports, Curry never had the chance to convince Durant.
Simons also said that about an hour before the plane lands, all of a sudden Durant announced on his Instagram that he will leave, which shocked Curry. He said that Curry's plane hadn't landed yet when Durant announced that he would sign with Brooklyn. Simons noted that Curry decided to do the honorable thing and goes to meet Durant anyway, basically to say goodbye to him.
According to Simons, by all accounts, Curry is one of the best teammates in the league and one of the best teammates in a long time. He added that he always kind of looked for KD and defended him.
Marc Spears, an NBA writer, wrote that Durant felt like he was operating in Curry's shadow. Spears also wrote that While Durant's shocking move to join the Warriors in 2016 quickly paid dividends for him, two straight championships and two Finals MVP awards, there was always the sense that the 10-time All-Star felt like a distant second fiddle to Stephen Curry. He added that perhaps it would have helped the Warriors' cause if their fans showed more love and appreciation for Durant's elite achievements.
