Kevin Durant has made it clear he intends to make Golden State his home for a long time, and if that means taking a little bit less money, KD is reportedly willing to make the sacrifice.
Durant is eligible for a maximum contract extension this summer, but wants to help the Warriors to keep all of their stars.
How do you keep a superteam together? Somebody has to take less & KD is willing. Story w/ @ChrisBHaynes https://t.co/EBmLFwNzXd
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) June 1, 2017
Durant erupted for 38 points Thursday night in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, and is on a quest to win his first championship.
Per ESPN:
Durant’s gesture would allow the Warriors to keep their entire core together for years to come. That’s even if star point guard Stephen Curry signs one of the first five-year, “supermax” contracts under the new collective bargaining agreement in which a team can reward one designated veteran per year with a contract starting at 35 percent of next year’s projected $101 million salary cap.
This is particularly relevant to free agents Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston, who have been pivotal to the Warriors’ success as they have advanced to three straight NBA Finals.
In order to sign Durant to the maximum possible extension this offseason, starting at an estimated $35.4 million per year, the Warriors would have to renounce their rights to Iguodala and Livingston to create room under the salary cap. The most they can pay Durant in 2017-18 without creating cap space is 120 percent of his 2016-17 salary, a little less than $32 million.
Durant could sign a so-called “non-Bird” extension for up to four years, but a more likely scenario would have him sign another two-year deal, with a player option on the second year (similar to what LeBron James did in Cleveland for several years). Durant would then be eligible for another one-plus-one deal next year starting at an estimated $35.7 million and a five-year, supermax contract of about $217 starting in 2019-20.
