The Golden State Warriors’ reign atop the NBA came to an end in part because of serious injuries to Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson. Durant blew out his achilles in the second quarter of Game 5, while Thompson tore his ACL in the third quarter of Game 6. They’re both brutal injuries to two of the best players in the NBA, complicated by the fact that the two are facing unrestricted free agency this summer.
It’s sometimes hard to justify giving a boatload of money to players coming off of serious injuries, but if any team is going to do that, it’s the Warriors with Durant and Thompson. And according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN, the Dubs are already planning on doing everything they can to blow the pair away.
Windhorst appeared on First Take on Friday morning and brought word of Golden State’s intention to put five-year max contracts on the table for both superstars.
“It is my understanding in talking to people with the Warriors organization is that their intention is to continue and offer Kevin Durant a full five-year max contract and to offer Klay a full five-year max contract,” Windhorst said.
Windhorst also mentioned that Golden State is facing a monster tax bill of “over $350 million.” Per our own Jeff Siegel, a five-year max for both players are expected to cost $221.27 million for Durant and $189.66 million for Thompson. It’s a steep price to pay, but as Draymond Green and Steph Curry said after Game 6, the Warriors don’t plan on going anywhere, and having Durant and Thompson around is a big reason why.
