Report: Stephen Curry Flew Back From Shanghai To Pitch Kevin Durant

Kevin Durant declined his player option and decided to join the Brooklyn Nets. The Golden State Warriors did their best to keep Durant on the team, but it didn’t work. Even Stephen Curry couldn’t stop him from signing with a different team. Durant announced his decision in an underwhelming Instagram video message.

The Ringer’s Bill Simmons reported that Stephen Curry was flying back from Shanghai to New York in order to meet with Durant one final time before the big decision. It was a 12-hour flight, and that’s not something you ignore. Curry made an awesome gesture, but he didn’t get the chance to talk to Durant. Curry’s plane landed an hour after Durant announced his decision to join the Nets. The Warriors didn’t get any chance to keep him.

“The Warriors still feel like they have a puncher’s chance to get him,” Simmons said. “Enough that Curry is going to fly back from Shanghai to New York and land on Sunday night, right after free agency starts, and he has this determined time with KD to just talk with him and put a bow on everything. Either, ‘Hey man, here’s how we feel about you…’ and convince him to stay, and if Durant’s not going to stay, they’ll talk about that.”

…

“Curry … decides to do the dignified thing and he goes to meet KD anyway,” Simmons said, “basically to say goodbye to him. But, from what I’ve heard, the Warriors took that personally.

“Because, by all accounts, undeniably, Curry is one of the best teammates in the league. And one of the best teammates in a long time. And has just always kind of looked out for KD and defended him and all that stuff.

“And it just was (crummy). That’s what I heard.”

There are so many rumors regarding the reasons Durant had to leave the Warriors. Some say it happened because he didn’t like head coach Steve Kerr. Others claim that Durant didn’t get the respect he deserved from Warriors fans. Well, he is gone now, and hopefully, the Warriors didn’t make a mistake by letting him go.