Kevin Durant says he seriously considered returning to the Golden State Warriors. Speaking with Sports Illustrated, the 37-year-old forward admitted that he “really thought about going back” before ultimately deciding against it, explaining that the way both the Warriors and Suns handled his situation left a bad taste in his mouth.
“I love Steph. I love hooping with Steph,” Durant told SI. “And I really thought about going back to the Warriors. But it was a certain part of me that just didn’t like that this last little phase of my career was gonna be—that these owners were just gonna work behind my back to make that decision for me.”
Durant’s comments reveal how close he came to reuniting with his former teammates, but also how deeply he values control over his own career. After years of public scrutiny and constant speculation about his future, Durant made it clear he wanted full transparency from the organizations involved. Once he sensed decisions were being made without his input, any interest in returning to Golden State quickly disappeared.
“I didn’t like that part of it,” Durant added. “And I felt like I worked my way up in this league and put a lot of sweat equity into my name and my game, or the respect or the brand that I’ve created. So you’re doing business behind my back, backdoor s*** like that—it just didn’t sit right with me. So I just wanted to wash my hands of both of those teams, the Warriors and the Suns. Because I didn’t like how they did business.”
Durant won two championships in Golden State, securing his legacy as one of the all-time greats. He was only there for three years before leaving in 2019, but he had an option to return this summer on his way out of Phoenix.
Leading up to the deadline, the Warriors had a deal lined up for Durant before he personally shut it down. Now in Houston, Durant is enjoying another fresh start as he aims to end his career on his own terms.
As a former MVP, two-time champion, and four-time scoring leader, KD feels that he deserves to write his own story, and he wasn’t going to let anything get in the way of that.
So as much as Durant would have thrived being back on the Warriors, he wasn’t going to stand for the owners deciding his next team. That’s why he took control of the situation and settled on an agreement to join the Rockets this summer.
At 37 years old, Kevin Durant isn’t the focal point in Houston, but he’s comfortable with the culture they’ve established. More importantly, he feels valued by the franchise and trusts that he can hoop without any backdoor betrayals.
For Durant, this chapter is about peace of mind as much as basketball. After years of bouncing from team to team, he’s finally where he wants to be, surrounded by players and leaders who respect his voice. Whether he wins another title or not, Durant seems content knowing this time the choice was fully his.
