Things just keep getting worse for Knicks fans. It wasn't that long ago that the Knicks had their hopes up for Zion Williamson, then they got R.J. Barrett. They were the supposed front-runners to sign both Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in free agency, but now both are going to Brooklyn instead.
Perhaps this was always going to happen, but the Knicks apparently didn't even put themselves in the game for Durant after trading Kristaps Porzingis in part to do exactly that. Per ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, the Knicks weren't even prepared to offer Durant a max contract.
The Knicks and owner Jim Dolan were not prepared to offer Kevin Durant a full max contract due to concerns over his recovery from the Achilles injury, league sources tell me and @wojespn. Knicks officials are in Los Angeles tonight, meeting with free agents such as Julius Randle.
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) June 30, 2019
Listen, concerns about a guy coming off an Achilles injury are not crazy. But the Warriors were reportedly ready to offer Durant $221 million. The Nets obviously believe he's still a full-max player. Every single person I've talked to in the league from the minute Durant was injured said he's still a max player, no question. Who are you going to trust? Some of the smarter organizations and people in the league, or the Knicks?
"While we understand that some Knicks fans could be disappointed with tonight's news, we continue to be upbeat and confident in our plans to rebuild the Knicks to compete for championships in the future, through both the draft and targeted free agents," Knicks president Steve Mills said in a statement.
Again, there's no saying they were realistically in the running for Durant anyway. But they didn't even enter the race. This has to be a gut punch for Knicks fans as James Dolan continues to perplex.
