Kevin Durant’s free agency decision may have settled in the minds of those outside Oklahoma CIty, considering how much has happened since then, but some are clearly still left wondering what could have been, including in some unlikely spots. The New York Knicks are facing Durant’s Warriors on Thursday night, that naturally would lead some Knicks fans to wonder, “What are we, chopped liver?”
Durant asked why he didn't join the Knicks, despite Melo's recruiting: "Uh, because I didn't want to."
— Ethan Strauss (@SherwoodStrauss) December 15, 2016
Pretty snappy response from Durant, giving that question exactly as much respect as it deserves. Fans of teams in major markets have developed a sort of exceptionalism through the years wherein they consider their teams more desirable simply because of their zip code, and Knicks fans are among the worst. You saw it in LeBron’s first Decision too, when people were thinking, “He’ll come to the Garden for the glory, because imagine how much more significant winning a title would be in New York!”
Of course, the Knicks have been mostly terrible for a decade, so one would think that puts a damper on how much “glory” is to be had.
The years leading up to Kevin Durant’s free agency were enticing to so many teams and fanbases because Durant was so taciturn beforehand that speculation filled in all of his blanks. In the end, only the Thunder and the Warriors were seriously considered, and plenty of other teams would have been before the dysfunctional Knicks. We don’t blame KD for not giving them a second thought.
