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After Oklahoma City Thunder’s Season-Ending Loss, Attention Turns To Durant’s Future

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots between Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) and center Enes Kanter (11) during the first half of Game 7 of the NBA's Western Conference finals in Oakland, Calif., Monday, May 30, 2016
Marcio Jose Sanchez
/
AP
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots between Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) and center Enes Kanter (11) during the first half of Game 7 of the NBA's Western Conference finals in Oakland, Calif., Monday, May 30, 2016

The Oklahoma City Thunder couldn't hang on in the final minutes Monday night, losing 96-88 in Game 7 of the NBA's Western Conference Finals.

The defending champion Golden State Warriors rallied from a 3-1 series deficit to secure a rematch of last year's NBA Finals with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Kevin Durant scored 27 points and Russell Westbrook added 19. The Oklahoman’sErik Horne blamed the loss on a string of 3-pointers from Golden State’s two star players:

The Warriors kept those fans on their feet with a barrage of 3-pointers — 17 in total, including 13 combined from Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. The final 3-pointer from Curry with 26.8 seconds left was the dagger in the Thunder's season, putting the Warriors ahead by 10 and sending the Thunder home as one of only 10 teams in NBA history to be eliminated from the NBA Playoffs after taking a 3-1 lead in a best-of-7 series.

After the game head coach Billy Donovan addressed concerns about some of the team's role players.

"Someone asked me, he said, you know, does Kanter, and Adams, and Waiters, and Roberson - do they have enough experience to go into this playoffs?” Donovan said. “Well, they, all of them got a lot better as the year went on. And as a coach, that's what you want to see. You want to see your team evolve and get better, and you want to see individual players evolve and get better."

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Now that the season is over, all eyes turn to Kevin Durant, who faces free agency. But the superstar forward dismissed questions about his future during the postgame news conference.

“We just lost like 30 minutes ago, so I haven't even thought about it. I'm just embracing my teammates and just reflecting on the season,” Durant said. “I'll think about that stuff, I don't know when. But we just lost an hour ago, 30 minutes ago, so I don't know."

Durant has spent his entire nine-year career with the Seattle Supersonics and the Oklahoma City Thunder. ESPN’s Tim MacMahon writes that a handful of elite teams could offer Durant a maximum contract starting at $25.9 million per year, including the two teams he just faced – the Warriors, and another Western Conference powerhouse, the San Antonio Spurs:

Durant could sign a five-year contract worth a projected $149 million if he opts to return to Oklahoma City this summer. His max contract if he leaves for another team would be a projected $111 million over four years. Another intriguing option for Durant this summer is to sign either a one-year deal or a two-year deal with a player option on the second season. With the cap continuing to rise and Durant reaching a decade of experience, meaning he would be eligible for the highest level of a max contract, he could cash in the following summer. In that scenario, Durant could make a projected $228 million over the next six seasons if he stays in Oklahoma City. He could make up to $176 million over five years if he leaves the Thunder, either this summer or in 2017.

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Brian Hardzinski is from Flower Mound, Texas and a graduate of the University of Oklahoma. He began his career at KGOU as a student intern, joining KGOU full time in 2009 as Operations and Public Service Announcement Director. He began regularly hosting Morning Edition in 2014, and became the station's first Digital News Editor in 2015-16. Brian’s work at KGOU has been honored by Public Radio News Directors Incorporated (PRNDI), the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters, the Oklahoma Associated Press Broadcasters, and local and regional chapters of the Society of Professional Journalists. Brian enjoys competing in triathlons, distance running, playing tennis, and entertaining his rambunctious Boston Terrier, Bucky.
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