The Golden State Warriors are reportedly bracing for the end of their era of supremacy, according to a bombshell report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The veteran journalist reported on Tuesday morning (AEST) the general feeling across the league is that the team will lose at least one of its stars this off-season with both Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson both looking for new deals.
Speaking ahead of the Warriors’ Game 4 showdown with Houston, Wojnarowski said the Warriors have moved to prioritise the contract negotiations with Thompson because of a sense that the franchise believes there is nothing else they can do to convince Durant to re-sign.
The reigning finals MVP has been widely linked with interest from a number of rival franchises, headlined by the cashed up New York Knicks.
“We all know that KD is All-World, but Golden State is not really prioritising him,” Wojnarowski told ESPN.
“Because KD’s his own man, he’s going to make whatever decision he’s going to make. And they believe whether he elects to stay or go, what else can they do for him? They’ve got a first-class organisation. They’re moving into a state-of-the-art new facility.
“They know that he commands the max, so they’d give it to him.
“He’s going to make the decision. But I also have been told that they have been advised, strongly I might add, by some of the elite in the game, Hall of Famers as executives and players: Prioritise Klay Thompson. In other words, offer Klay Thompson every penny that you can. If you short-change him in any way in free agency, he will consider departing. Probably for the Clippers more so than anybody else.”
“We need to keep our eyes on that, even though I’m told by Golden State there’s no way in hell they’re going to do that. They’re going to keep the Splash Brothers together.”
He also told ESPN’s Get Up, that a max five-year $190 million deal would be enough to convince Thompson to re-sign without even testing the waters of free agency.
The New York Post reported this week that Durant’s speculated link-up with Celtics star Kyrie Irving next year in New York is far from a done deal.