Jalen Rose makes bogus claim that Kevin Durant was 'really considering' Knicks during free agency
According to Jalen Rose, Kevin Durant had the New York Knicks at the top of his list before he suffered his season-ending Achilles injury. When Durant left the floor in Game 5 of the NBA finals, Kyrie Irving, not him, became the key person pulling the strings to dictate where the duo landed during free agency.
"So the Knicks, of course you want to sign (Kevin Durant), of course you want to sign Kyrie (Irving). And (Durant) even talked about, he was really considering the team (the Knicks) and then he was almost the lead recruiter. To the point where when he got injured, Kyrie became the lead recruiter. And ultimately, he ended up with the Nets. They didn't know he was coming, he announced it on IG (Instagram). The Knicks were in the conversation.
Irving, a fan of the Nets since childhood, chose the Nets over the Knicks not only because of his fandom growing up, but because of the culture fit, expert coaching staff and innovative front office.
For Rose to suggest that Durant would have picked the Knicks if healthy is truly foolish and naive. The Knicks dysfunction and apathetic and incompetent owner have turned off droves of free agents and Durant followed in suit.
Rose claimed prior to free agency that both Durant and Irving were headed to the Knicks, but instead of admitting his sourcing and prediction were wrong, he's concocting an alternative story that claims Durant's injury changed the fortune fo both the Knicks and Nets.
Durant has told reporters multiple times that he didn't have his mind made up prior to the injury and until he and Irving sat together until 4am in a hotel room to discuss free agency plans, the destination wasn't clear.
Obviously the ESPN Analyst wants to make-up for his prediction gone wrong, but his narrative is as easy to see through as the backboard at Barcalys Center. Durant and Kyrie aimed to team up all along and the two close friends determined their future in Brooklyn together.
