Kevin Durant Recalls 2019 Free Agency Saga, Admits Knicks Are 'Cool'
Like many native New Yorkers, Rich Kleiman wanted to see Kevin Durant on the New York Knicks.
Durant and his agent Kleiman looked back on their summer saga of 2019, one that saw the 14-time NBA All-Star move on from the Golden State Warriors, in a video posted on their sports/culture network Boardroom this week. That summer saw Durant touch down in New York City, though he spurned Kleiman's Manhattan desires to play for the Brooklyn Nets instead.
“Will you tell the camera and whatever Knicks fans will watch this that I wanted you to go to the Knicks?" Kleiman jokingly begged Durant, who fully admitted that was the case.
Wendell Cruz, USA TODAY SPORTS
At the time, the Knicks were reeling from the trade of franchise face Kristaps Porzingis, the latest move of a seemingly never-ending rebuild. The leftovers were led by by Los Angeles Lakers castaway Julius Randle and RJ Barrett, the consolation prize in the preceding NBA Draft after lottery balls bounced the Knicks, fresh off a 17-win disaster, out of a chance to draft either Zion Williamson or Ja Morant.
Many observers believed that Durant was destined to be the savior of the Knicks but he shut down the idea of a reunion when he declared in a radio interview with famed city radio station Hot 97 (WQHT) that "the cool thing right now is not the Knicks." He instead signed with the Nets, who were also armed with Kyrie Irving and later added James Harden.
“The brand was cool, but at the time, you know I’m not looking at the cool brand outside of the game,” Durant recalled. “I was looking at the team, and the team was not cool to play for. The team was not cool to watch. It wasn’t a good team to watch. I might have embellished a little bit or lied a little bit about, like, the brand. I might have thrown the brand in there, too.”
No matter what Durant thought of the Knicks' brand, no one could deny that they were not a fun viewing experience: as Durant recovered from an Achilles injury sustained in the prior season's NBA Finals, the Knicks lost 18 of their first 22, which led to the firing of head coach David Fizdale. Struggling to stay healthy proved to be a theme in the Durant/Harden/Irving era, as the two played only 16 games in Brooklyn together. All three have since moved on from the borough, with Durant now repping the Phoenix Suns.
The Knicks, on the other hand, have developed a new culture and consistency after some meandering, as Randle has bloomed into a star, as has Jalen Brunson, who came over as a free agent from Dallas during the 2022 offseason. Though he wouldn't fully walk back his comments from 2019, Durant did admit that there's a new perception around Knicks basketball.
“The Knicks weren’t cool, but they are a cool brand. … They’re popping right now. They’re playing well. The last few years, they were playing well."
“But before that, they weren’t playing well.”
Barring a showdown in the NBA Finals, the Knicks won't face Durant again this season, having split their annual set with the Suns. Instead, New York (33-22) will open its post All-Star break slate on Thursday night against the Philadelphia 76ers (7 p.m. ET, MSG).
