Did the warriors dodge a bullet by not signing Durant?

[tazzmaniac]

It's hard to answer this question, considering the Warriors forced Durant to play, while it was clear he wasn't ready.

So, they forced him into that position

If I really wanted to be cynical, I would venture to say they knew he was going to leave, so they didn't care about his health.

And Bob Myers' fake tears....please!

So in the era of player empowerment the Warriors forced KD to play?  Don't think so. 

[Fafnir]

You absolutely cannot force a player to play. Durant wanted to play and had his own doctor sign off on it. The Warriors had the power to prevent him from playing, but not to force him to play.

The ambiguous time table they gave the media may have created pressure on Durant in his mind certainly. Reports from plugged in Durant guys were that game 5 of Finals was their "target" date during the layoff.

I think his upcoming FA put pressure on GSW to let him play, if he was under contract another year they would have felt more secure in telling him no and hold him out the entire Finals.

[gpap]

I'll rephrase.

The Warriors didn't force him, but they didn't exactly go out of their way to protect him, either.

[Fafnir]

I want to put a caveat on the "you cannot force a player to play". You cannot force player of Durant's stature to play. A end of bench guy who isn't secure in his contract and status could be threatened with being cut or let go in the offseason. Durant was not in that situation though.

[Fafnir]

I'll rephrase.

The Warriors didn't force him, but they didn't exactly go out of their way to protect him, either.

But that's on Durant and his own power more than anything. How do you tell an upcoming FA with all the power this off season whom you are desperate to keep "no you cannot play"?

[makaveli]

The topic title is too strong, but i think he was never going to sign there anyways and yes, i think that it is better that they didn’t, because klay and or green would sign somewhere else.

 I expect a special season from curry

[Walker Wiggle]

Some food for thought:

Assuming it takes two years for Durant to get back to his old self (one year of rehab and one additional season), which is reasonable for this type of injury if you ask me, here’s what you’ll have at that point:

- Durant will be 32 with a reconstructed achilles and one more year left on his deal before the player option.
- Kyrie will be 29 with one more year left on his deal before the player option.
- Jordan will be 33 with two more years at $10m per.

Hardly a disaster, but not the coup that some people have characterized the Nets’ offseason as.

[Ty_Unabi]

He will come back at 32 and recovering from an Achilles injury

Achilles is unforgiving and so is father time

The nets will be crossing their fingers for the next 3 years hoping Durant comes back to form

I agree with you, "The Nets will be crossing their fingers" And I will be enjoying Kyrie being a failure with the Nets.

[libermaniac]

They could've started Durant at center. They would have been fine.

He is big enough and skilled enough to survive a large loss in explosive quickness and agility ... and still be a dominant player in the NBA.

Agreed.  To me, worst case for KD is a Dirk-like player.