Kevin Durant now has an MVP on his mantle after beating out LeBron James for the 2013-14 season, but in the future, the OKC superstar could leave the city and teams like Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets and Miami Heat all would chase him if he does, as Durant has not always been appreciated in Oklahoma City by the fans and the media and that could lead him to bolt as a free agent come 2016.
Durant's free agency is still a number of years away, but things came into focus during the playoffs after a very pointed headline after Game 5 of the Thunder series against the Memphis Grizzlies. The headline said Durant was "Mr. Unreliable," and while that only was referring to his recent struggles in that series against Memphis, many it took it a different way and some observed that there is a feeling in OKC that Durant is not as appreciated as he should be. LeBron James came out to criticize the headline and so did many other players and it also prompted the Oklahoman to put out a response.
The paper said it was more about this series rather than what Durant has done during his whole career, but the fact that many saw it the other way speaks volumes about the way he is treated in OKC. Now of course one headline doesn't make a player leave a city, but even with the miscommunication on what the title meant, it kind of is a microcosm of the whole situation regarding Durant and Oklahoma City. Durant of course bounced back and had over 30 points to force a Game 7 against the Grizzlies and then he helped the team win that matchup and now they are into the second round.
Durant has an MVP award now and heading into the second game of the series with the Clippers, OKC has a must win situation on their hands or they could go down 2-0 in the series. Heading into free agency in 2016, Durant may have no choice but to weight his options, as there is a good chance the team will not have a championship by then and it could make him think about leaving. Russell Westbrook is a great player, but he shoots too much and can't seem to get over the fact that Durant is the MVP and alpha dog of the team and there is no excuse for him taking as many shots as he does.
The Thunder traded away one of their best players in James Harden over money and that must have been tough for Durant to deal with and now he could head into the 2016 summer with another MVP award or two, but no NBA championship. LeBron had to leave for Miami to win and Durant may have to make a decision similar to that one. Obviously that is still a few years away, but if the papers keep hating on Durant and the team doesn't add some more firepower over the next couple seasons, OKC could see their superstar leave for the bright lights of another city like LA, NY or Chicago.