By now, most NBA fans are aware of the story of Draymond Green calling to recruit Kevin Durant after losing the NBA Finals in 2016. But according to Draymond, the recruiting process actually began a year earlier when he made a pitch to Bob Myers and the Warriors’ front office.
“When I signed my deal, BJ Armstrong was my agent. The conversation me and BJ had was like ‘listen, here’s your whole cap table, here’s what it is next year,'” said Draymond on the 7PM in Brooklyn podcast. “Look who’s a free agent next year… KD.’ Here’s what you can take and you’ll still be able to pay him the max.”
According to Draymond, he signed his extension that summer with the intention of allowing the Warriors to be flexible. In fact, he took a $3 million pay cut to help the team “sign other guys” until they finally pulled off the Kevin Durant signing in the following summer.
“I wrote 82 on a sheet of paper, he was like ‘alright circle it but if you circle it you saying it’s done…’ I circled it, he took the sheet of paper and left,” said Green. “So that was it, that was the conversation, a whole summer before Durant became a free agent.”
At the time, nobody could fathom the thought of the Warriors pursuing a superstar like Kevin Durant. In 2015-16, the Warriors were already the best team in basketball and Draymond knew that adding Durant would tip the scales heavily in their favor.
But it was Draymond who started the push for Durant and he began the process a whole year before he even joined. By the time Durant was a free agent in 2016, Draymond called him personally to extend his invitation to the franchise.
Sadly, Draymond may also be to blame for pushing Durant out just a few years later, after they had a falling out that was public for the whole world to see.
Draymond Green Had A Falling Out With Kevin Durant
Draymond often likes to take credit for bringing Durant to the team, and his role in that outcome is undeniable considering what he did to help facilitate his arrival. During his time with the Warriors, Durant enjoyed unprecedented prosperity, winning two championships in three straight trips to the Finals.
Unfortunately, Draymond and Durant had a falling out during their final season together and it drove an irreparable rift in their relationship. The incident happened in a game against the Clippers when Dray went off on Durant from the bench after a late-game play went wrong.
Durant isolated himself after the altercation and things were never the same again. At the first chance he got, Kevin left the Warriors behind and he hasn’t looked back since. Had he stuck around that summer, the Warriors may have been able to continue their dynasty, and it could still be alive today.
Instead, the Warriors collapsed from the inside out and Durant left the team almost as quickly as he joined them. For Draymond, while it’s unlikely that he has any regrets about how it all went down, it’s a shame that he was unable to make things work with the guy after going through so much effort to get him on the team.
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