The Kevin Durant recruiting campaign officially commended moments after the Oklahoma City Thunder lost in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals and historically blew a 3-1 lead against the Golden State Warriors.
One hour after the Warriors celebrated their second consecutive Western Conference title, Celtics All-star Isaiah Thomas took to Twitter who he would like to see join the Celtics. In a tweet towards Durant (that he quickly deleted), Thomas wrote No. 35 (Durant's No.) with a Shamrock (representing the Celtics) emoji.
Thomas, who has said in the past that he will be doing his best to recruit players to come to Boston over the summer, may have thought it was a little too soon to start his #DuranttoBoston campaign. For the first time in years, Durant and a healthy Thunder team, made a deep playoff run that ended in a Game 7 where Oklahoma City blew a 13-point lead. So the tweet may have been a bit insensitive.
And the insensitivity didn't end there -- for longtime Celtics fans, seeing No. 35 with a shamrock is typically associated with the late Celtics captain Reggie Lewis, who died in 1993. His No. 35 hangs from the rafters at TD Garden.
So, Thomas may have jumped the gun a bit. However, it's nice to see Thomas stand up and speak for Celtics Nation in this pipe dream of landing Durant, I guess?
It may be too early to tell what Durant will decide to do this summer but as of right now, all signs seems to point to him staying with the Thunder for at least another year. If Durant were to sign a 2-year contract with a player option, he could decide to leave after next season if Oklahoma City is unable to re-sign All-star Russell Westbrook, whose contract expires in 2017.
For the Celtics to improve their chances of signing Durant, it's going to take more than a tweet from Thomas. ESPN's Marc Stein is predicting teams like the Warriors, Spurs and Heat to pursue Durant in free agency -- a tough list for the Celtics to top.
Did Thomas help the Celtics' chances at all?Wizards, Heat, Celtics, Rockets, Knicks, Lakers, Spurs and, yes, Warriors ... all expected to pursue Kevin Durant in free agency this summer— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) May 31, 2016
No.
Does it hurt the Celtics' chances?
Eh, not necessarily.
It just sort of magnifies the fact that the chances of Durant joining the Celtics is still slim. Even if their best player is willing to let the world know who he really wants to play with next season.
Josue Pavon
Twitter: @Joe_Sway10
@CausewayStreet
photo used is courtesy of associated press
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