by:STEVEN GEHEGAN/Staff Writer
At the end of the National Basketball League season, Kevin Durant needs to make a decision.
Should he stay, or go? Maybe it is time for Durant to say goodbye to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
After all of the seasons that Durant spent with the Thunder, this team should have been more successful. The Thunder have made some questionable moves, such as choosing Serge Ibaka over James Harden, and hiring a coach who had not coached in the NBA. If Durant wants to win an NBA title, then he will need to leave the Thunder behind and move on to greener pastures.
There would be several choices that would make sense for Durant, starting with the Washington Wizards, especially if Durant wants to play for the town that he grew up in, like LeBron James. If his goal is to win a championship, then he needs to head to the West Coast and join one of three teams.
One of them is the Los Angeles Lakers. The team might not have too much now, but that could change during the next few years. The Lakers have a few promising pieces in Jordan Clarkson and Julius Randel to help Durant win some games the first year he is there. The Lakers’ chance to win would change if they can land Russell Westbrook. If those two still want to play together and do not believe that they cannot win a championship with the Thunder, the Lakers would be the best option. With these two playing together in a city such as Los Angeles, they could draw bigger free agents who want to live there and not in Oklahoma.
If Durant wants to win during the next NBA season, then he could join the other side of Los Angeles and sign with the Los Angeles Clippers. With Chris Paul, DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin, plus Doc Rivers as the coach, then Durant joining the team would make them an instant title contender. While the Clippers might need to move some players around to make this happen, it would be a great team. Even if they have to move Griffin in order to get Durant, it would make them better. This team, lead by Paul, could have many successful seasons.
The one team that could almost give Durant a title next season and several years in the future would be the team that won the championship last year, the Golden State Warriors. With the way the Warriors are playing this season, being on pace to have the most regular-season wins in NBA history, and the money to give to Durant, it just makes sense all the way around.
If Durant cares about winning championships, then Golden State is the place he needs to be.
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