UPDATE (4:45 pm): Royce Young has clarified his comments to demonstrate that what he said was not a direct quote of Durant, but rather a characterization of his sentiments at the time.
I misspoke yesterday on the @TrueHoopTV podcast about Durant/Westbrook and wanted to clarify it: https://t.co/nKckEGPKLo
— Royce Young (@royceyoung) July 27, 2016
When it comes to the Thunder, ESPN.com writer Royce Young might as well be a member of the organization. He’s unearthed that many inside details.
Whether it was the Oklahoma City front office staying at a Holiday Inn when they pursued Kevin Durant at The Hamptons, or what song Durant was listening to as he pondered his future, Young has proven he’s plugged in.
His credibility did not go unnoticed in his most recent True Hoop podcast.
“Three weeks ago, Kevin Durant’s sitting there at dinner, telling him (Westbrook) ‘Hey, I’m coming back, man. Don’t worry about it,’” Young said. “And now, Russell Westbrook has been kind of thrown into this and having to decide his future a summer earlier than expected.”
The narrative Young painted of Durant in his departing article, was that the former MVP was prone to switching his mind on a whim. It appears that became the case in Oklahoma City. Young’s quote makes it seem as if the Warriors’ all-in meeting, which included Steph Curry, Draymond Green, Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala, was really the moment Durant decided he was leaving for greener pastures.
With Westbrook’s future clearly up in the air, the point guard has been linked to the Lakers and Timberwolves in trade scenarios. If he did stay with the Thunder, Oklahoma City is rumored to be interested in native son Blake Griffin, who will be a free agent following the 2017 season.
In the mean time, Durant’s return to Oklahoma City is a date Westbrook is probably circling in red marker on his calendar.