Nobody knows what Kevin Durant is going to do this summer in free agency — they can only speculate. He obviously isn’t going to comment on recent rumors that the Spurs are interested in signing him while the Thunder are in the middle of a series with him, but he did comment on one Spurs player’s own choice last summer.
David West opted out of the final year of his contract in Indiana, a deal that would have paid him $12.6 million, and signed with the Spurs for the veteran’s minimum (about $1.5 million), in order to have a chance to contend for a title.
Here’s what Durant said about ia Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman:Asked about West taking less money...
Kevin Durant: “I respect it. Money isn’t everything in this life. I know we tend to think about taking care of your family, being financially stable. But from the outside looking in, it looks like he said, well, I’ve been blessed to make X amount and I’ll be happy chasing something that’s the grand prize in this league. So I respected him for it. A lot of guys wouldn’t have done it.”What Durant says here isn’t indicative of what he’ll do in free agency, and the decision he makes will take a lot of factors into account. Money will be one of them, but so will winning and culture.
