Dallas Mavericks: Kevin Durant’s injury could impact free agency plans

Kevin Durant suffered a serious injury last night in the NBA Finals game between the Golden State Warriors and Toronto Raptors. As the premier free agent this summer, what does this achilles injury mean?

First of all, we here at The Smoking Cuban, and Dallas Mavericks fans broadly, send our condolences to Kevin Durant and hope that he can make a full recovery from the injury suffered in last night’s game. You never want to see an injury like that and no matter what your feelings about the player may be, we can all agree that we hope KD can come back to basketball healthy and ready to play whenever he is able.

Achilles injuries can be devastating for a career in sports. It has signaled the end for several great basketball players, but we have also seen recently that some guys have been able to make it back and still contribute. Kevin Durant is still in the prime of his career, so the chances of him making it back are high.

What does this injury do to the highly anticipated free agency period coming this summer? With KD being the premier name on many team’s lists, how much could a potential season long recovery change the flow of free agency?

Brad Townsend, writer for The Dallas Morning News, posed an interesting question last night after KD’s injury. Here is what it said:

If I am the Dallas Mavericks front office, there is no hesitation in offering Kevin Durant every cent that we can. There is a definite case to be made that Durant is the best player in the league right now, and if you have to pay him $35+ million to sit on the bench for a year and guarantee pairing him with Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis for two years, you do that in a second.

The issue with this is that there are a dozen other teams who will do the exact same thing for a chance to get Durant. No one minds putting their team on hold for a year when you could have a shot at a title the next year. That is what this league is all about.

The other thing the Mavs need to think about is who all is going to offer KD and how long will it take him to make his decision. There is an avenue that could be available to the Mavericks where they could have a shot at some other tier two players who’s teams are waiting for KD’s decision. The Mavs have made moves like this in the past and it is a strategy to consider.

This injury is certainly going to change things up a little bit this summer. Whether it means a new destination for Durant or just a general confusion/limbo period for all of free agency, things are going to be a little bit different than if this had not happened.

The Mavs fans are ready for free agency, although it is still unclear what may happen for the team. The KD injury is sad and we wish him well, but there is no doubt that everything is going to look a little different than we first thought this summer.