SPANISH HARLEM – Kevin Durant officially announced on Instagram what many believed to be true, he ruptured his Achilles and underwent surgery. 
Now begins the long road back but not without some interesting circumstances. With free agency only weeks away, the question remains on what he will do. He can enter the market and hope that teams are still willing to offer him a max contract or re-up with the Golden State Warriors and rehab his injury… with a guaranteed 30 million and try his luck again next season. While many think the safe bet would be to re-up, there are still whispers that teams would be willing to offer the max. Let’s take a deeper look at one option because I know at least one team that is going to ask for a meeting.
THE NEW YORK KNICKS
Let’s be honest here, this organization has never shied away from adding big-name players, regardless of injury history. It’s not like this franchise hasn’t paid superstars that were past their prime. There is a long history of players coming to the Knicks because they were willing to offer the most money. We all know this is a unique situation because before Durant went down to injury, he was going to be the best player to hit free agency this off season. That changes now for a lot of teams but I don’t think that changes much for the Knicks. It has been long rumored that KD was coming to Madison Square Garden and New York put all their eggs in that basket when they traded Kristaps Porzingis to create cap space for two max contracts. With Kyrie Irving now being linked to the Brooklyn Nets, the opportunity to add a marque player is dwindling. The one thing you have to ask yourself if your a Knicks is: Are you willing to wait a for year for a healthy Kevin Durant?
I’m actually one of the few people that believes Kevin Durant will be great again. I know this injury is potentially devastating and has been to many players but if anyone can do, its KD. Durant has always been a great shooter and an excellent ball handler so those things won’t change. Athletically, there will be some drop off but he wasn’t ever the type of player that played above the rim like many people his height. He will still be 7 feet tall. He will still be able to shoot over anybody that defends him. If I’m Jim Dolan & Co., I still want a guy like Durant. You can draft RJ Barrett, continue to develop the young players you have and if you stink again then you go back to the lottery and add another player. I know some people will say I’m crazy but I would still do the deal and hope that Durant comes back. That’s it.
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