On July 1st NBA Free Agency opens with the big news being that one of the league’s superstars, Kevin Durant, is an Unrestricted Free Agent and may be open to leaving the Oklahoma City Thunder. He’s called the Thunder organization home for nine seasons.



According to numerous sources, Durant has set meeting with six teams for July 1st including the Golden State Warriors, the Miami Heat, the Boston Celtics, the San Antonio Spurs, the Los Angeles Clippers and his incumbent Oklahoma City Thunder.



A dark horse has also emerged, the New York Knicks. According to the New York Post one specific reason for this is Durant’s relationship with Carmelo Anthony:



“Melo has been my friend. He’s been my friend since I’ve been in high school. We talk about everything,” Durant said. “That’s like my big brother right there. The best thing about all of us [is that] none of the guys here have put any type of pressure. It’s been cool.”



Notwithstanding, the two small forwards closeness and even with the addition of Derrick Rose, it’s hard to see Durant seriously considering New York. After all, the former MVP Rose averaged just 4.7 assists per game last season. Furthermore, effectively fitting Kristaps Porzingis, Anthony and Durant on the court at the same time would be quite the conundrum for first year Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek.



Having said that, here we will focus on the six teams Durant has set meetings with. As the 2004 College Basketball Player of the Year turns 28 on September 29th, Durant is in the midst of his NBA prime. He needs to pick, not only a team that provides him the opportunity to win a championship, but also a team that has a bright future.



In short, a situation that will give him the potential, when all is said and done, for his name to be mentioned in the same conversation as the Magics, Birds, Tim Duncans and Shaqs of the world, allowing him to cement his legacy as an all team great.



Here are the rankings of the six teams he should sign with based off of that criteria:





6. Miami Heat



The Heat have a very solid core with Justise Winslow, Goran Dragic, Luol Deng and Dwyane Wade. The big problem for Miami is that there’s no way they can afford to sign Hassan Whiteside, Durant, Wade and Deng who are all Unrestricted Free Agents. Without Whiteside, even with Durant, it’s questionable whether this would be an NBA Championship contending team.



There’s also the big question of Chris Bosh.



Even if Bosh plays next season, this is an aging team. Wade had a very good season in 2015-2016 but will turn 35 in the upcoming season. Paul Pierce is an example of a small forward who maintained excellence for a long time but he had a precipitous drop off last season. Using Pierce as an example, Wade has probably at most three good seasons left and that probably is a kind estimate considering The Truth was much less reliant on his athleticism throughout his career.



Lastly, there’s the elephant in the room that Durant going to Miami would invoke too many comparisons to LeBron and “The Decision.” This is the last comparison Durant wants as he continues to carve his own place in NBA lore.



As a result, joining the Miami Heat would be a horrible decision in terms of Durant’s legacy.





5. Golden State Warriors



On paper, if Durant’s lone objective is to win a championship the Warriors would be the obvious choice. You would have arguably the league’s two best scorers on the floor at the same time in Steph Curry and Durant (perhaps an argument could be made for Harden) as well as arguably the league’s best two way two guard in Klay Thompson and an abundance of other positives (great owners and coach, amazing fans, Draymond Green and a system that Durant could potentially flourish in).



The only problem is this is a team the Thunder had on the ropes in the Western Conference Finals last season. Joining a team’s arch nemesis is a decision that an all time great would not make. All time greats want to step up to the challenge and show that they can make that next step and lead their team to the promised land. This would be the kind of situation that would be perfect for Durant in four years if he were on a floundering team and had yet to win a title, but not now.



Signing with the Golden State Warriors would be a terrible idea for Kevin Durant in terms of his NBA legacy.





4. San Antonio Spurs



The same logic that applies to the Warriors applies to the Spurs. This is also a team that Oklahoma City beat decidedly in the Western Conference semi-finals. Why join a team that your current team has shown that it’s better than come playoff time? Besides, not unlike the Heat, the Spurs also have some major concerns with aging issues with Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan .



To make matters worse, Danny Green had a horrible shooting year this past season, even though he was getting plenty of open looks.



Scheme and chemistry issues are another factor, just like with the Knicks. The Spurs already have a superstar in Kawhi Leonard playing the small forward. Would Durant play a stretch four role moving LaMarcus Aldridge to center? This would be a tough fit considering that Aldridge is more of a jump shooter than a low post presence. San Antonio’s perimeter would look awfully crowded in this hypothetical.



There’s also the issue that this is the borderline dynasty that Tim Duncan built. Once again, Durant wants to carve out his own greatness niche.



Joining the Spurs in 2016-2017, in terms of his legacy, would be a poor long term decision for Kevin Durant.





3. Los Angeles Clippers



The Clippers are teeming with talent but still have yet to make a Western Conference Finals. Seemingly, the missing link, in addition to the bench, has always been at the small forward.



In order to acquire Durant this would probably require a sign and trade with Blake Griffin. Griffin would be a loss but Durant’s presence would help stretch the floor and ultimately make the Clips a better team. This would especially be true in the pick and roll and for getting even more looks for J.J. Redick. Redick shot .475 from three last season. This is a full .21 percentage points better than Steph Curry and easily the best in the league for players with significant playing time.



However, Redick, who is also an underrated defender, just turned 32. Meaning father time could be an issue as it is with Chris Paul. Chris Paul is 31 and theoretically should have around five more good years in the league, barring injury, but there’s no guarantee. Durant might welcome the change of playing with a traditional point guard but Paul’s age could be a concern. There’s also the significant quandary of replacing Jamal Crawford’s offensive infusion off the bench as the Clippers are unlikely to re-sign the 15 year veteran.



The good news for Los Angeles is that the Clips have never really been good enough come playoff time for it to appear as though Durant would be joining a rival as it would with the Spurs and Warriors. There’s also the intrigue of elevating one of the most woeful franchises in the history of sports to a title which would ensure Durant’s place in NBA lore.



The aging roster and the loss of Jamal Crawford’s output are all very valid concerns.



Taking all these factors into consideration, joining forces with the Clippers would be a decent decision in term of Durant’s potential long term legacy





2. Boston Celtics



The Celtics are the only team in the NBA that have the ability to sign two max free agents and they’re already incredibly deep with complementary pieces. They need a reliable center or rim protector but signing Durant would go a long way to acquiring, potentially, Al Horfod, Hassan Whiteside, Bismack Biyombo or even Dwight Howard. There’s also still the potential for some kind of deal with the Sixers to acquire Nerlens Noel or Jahlil Okafor.



Not to mention, the Celtics have the assets to potentially trade for DeMarcus Cousins once the Sacramento Kings realize that he’s gone when his contract expires and a better decision is to rebuild the culture from the ground up.



Boston already had one of the best perimeter defenses in the league with Avery Bradley, Jae Crowder and Marcus Smart. Isaiah Thomas is a star but not quite a superstar. He is becoming a very good distributor in Brad Stevens’ system but there’d be no question this would be Durant’s team.



For the next two seasons, Boston will still reap the benefits of the Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce trade to the Nets . The Nets could quite possibly be the worst team in the league over this time giving the Celtics two very high draft picks who would be playing under their rookie contracts and learning under Durant and Brad Stevens. Next year’s draft in particular, should have some very special talent at the top.



The Celtics have arguably the best tradition in the NBA but enough time has passed between the 2008 championship that Durant would be considered the conquering hero if he could raise at least one more banner in the garden.



Finally, the C’s play an uptempo brand of team basketball that would be excellently suited for Durant’s game. His ability to penetrate would help Boston’s three point shooting immensely.

Despite their reputation, Boston has some players who can shoot the ball. Thomas and Avery Bradley both shot 36% this past season but those percentages would improve with Durant’s ability to penetrate and draw in the defense. There’s also stretch four Kelly Olynyk, who shot over 40% from three in 2015-2016.



Taking all these things into consideration Durant choosing to put on Celtic green would be an excellent long term decision in terms of his legacy.





1. Oklahoma City Thunder



As was talked about earlier, Durant’s Oklahoma City Thunder led the 73 win Golden State Warriors by 2 up 3-2 with 2:22 left in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals. This is a game in which Durant and Russell Westbrook shot a combined 20-58 from the field. Even so, if it wasn’t for Klay Thompson’s heroics (11-18 from 3) the Thunder would have won that game and would have had an excellent chance against the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals.



Billy Donovan proved that he can make playoff adjustments on the fly and Steven Adams will be just 23 years old next season and is an emerging star. He can serve as a rim protector as well as being solid on pick and roll switches on the perimeter. An invaluable commodity in today’s NBA.



Late game execution was the Thunder’s bugaboo in both the regular season and playoffs but this is a kink that should be able to be worked out as Donovan enters his second season and becomes more acclimated to the NBA.



There’s also the addition of Victor Oladipo, Ersan Illyasova and Domantas Sabonis. The Thunder lost a bit something defensively with the loss of Serge Ibaka but Illyasova’s three point shooting is an ideal replacement to open up driving lanes for Russell Westbrook. Oladipo can serve either as a potent starting two guard or can be an amazing spark plug off the bench at the 1 or 2 spot.



OKC is home for Durant, and abandoning his team when they are so close to getting over the hump would not endear Durant to NBA fans or help him in the perception of the lexicon of NBA all time greats.



Signing, at minimum, a one year contract with the Thunder would be Kevin Durant’s best decision in terms of his potential enduring NBA legacy.

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