The OKC Thunder have Kevin Durant as their main priority for 2016 free agency, as teams like the Washington Wizards, Golden State Warriors, Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics are planning to chase Durant and this comes as Oklahoma City is working to re-sign restricted free agent Enes Kanter to a contract, but talks have been slow.
Durant is the main player set to hit free agency in 2016 and that has numerous teams trying to clear cap space to set up to chase the forward next summer. According to ESPN.com, teams like the Warriors, Celtics, Wizards and Mavericks feel they have a chance to sign Durant next summer. The Wizards are the home town team of Durant and they could try and convince him to pull a LeBron James and return where he originally came from.
Durant is also expected to be chased by the Boston Celtics, as they have a ton of cap space now and could have even more come next year. The team reportedly wanted to sign Kevin Love or Greg Monroe, but after missing out on all the major names, the team is concentrating on next summer. According to the Boston Globe, the Celtics could have over $50 million in cap space to use and that means the team could sign "two max" free agent players.
NESN.com reports that the team will try and chase Durant, while a player like Eric Gordon or Chris Paul also could be options, but Durant is the main target. The Celtics could be an attractive landing spot, as the team has a young core, they just made the playoffs in the east and they have a strong coach in Brad Stevens. The Celtics think they are a good spot for Durant and the Mavericks also believe they can be a fit for the former Texas Longhorns star.
The team just lost DeAndre Jordan back to the Clippers, so that takes some cap space off the books and could lead to the team trying to chase Durant next summer. According to Chris Mannix at Sports Illustrated, the Mavericks think they are "legitimate contenders" to get Durant next summer, as they will have cap space and signed Wesley Matthews in free agency. Mannix qualified that with "Dallas's off-season haul" so Jordan leaving could change things, but the team did add Matthews and could look at other moves between now and next summer.
Check here for more on the interest in Durant by teams in free agency and for more on the signing of Enes Kanter to a new deal. Check here for news on the Mavericks and the free agent chase for Durant.
Speaking of the Mavericks, some have suggested that the team could make an offer on Kanter after losing Jordan, but that is looking unlikely right now. According to Zach Lowe at ESPN and Grantland, the Mavericks could take a look at a Kanter deal, as he suggested that the team "could have a major effect" on the negotiations between OKC and Kanter. OKC can match offers for Kanter as an RFA. The Blazers have also reportedly been watching the Kanter situation, as they have lost LaMarcus Aldridge in free agency.
UPDATE: According to Adrian Wojnarowski : "OKC's Enes Kanter is in Portland, preparing to sign an offer sheet with Blazers, league sources tell Yahoo Sports."
Talks have been slow to develop with Kanter and that was mostly because there was not much interest for him on the market apart from initial reports about the Knicks and Blazers. Those teams have made other moves, but now that Jordan is gone from Dallas, the Mavs could make an offer. Last season Kanter came over in a trade and he averaged 15 points and nine rebounds per game in 75 games last year between the Jazz and Thunder.