Fans in Oklahoma City waiting to tell the departed Kevin Durant just what they think of him will have to wait.
According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, the Oklahoma City Thunder will not host the Golden State Warriors until February of the 2016-17 season.
Story going online now: League sources say Oklahoma City is tentatively scheduled to play host to Kevin Durant for the first time on Feb. 11
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) August 8, 2016
While fans in Oklahoma City will have to wait to see Durant, his former teammates will not. Additionally, while a Thunder-Warriors match-up would seem perfect for a Christmas Day collision, that has been reserved for an NBA Finals rematch for the second year in a row.
“Durant’s first game against Russell Westbrook and the rest of the Thunder is tentatively scheduled in the second week of the season, on Nov. 3 in Oakland,” writes Stein. “Sources say the centerpiece of the league’s annual Christmas Day schedule, meanwhile, is a rematch of the NBA Finals and a repeat of the Warriors-Cleveland Cavaliers showdown from last Christmas.”
While February 11 is not a holiday, it is a Saturday. With that, Golden State’s trip to Oklahoma City can certainly be expected to get game of the week recognition and a nationally televised audience.
Durant had played his entire career with the Thunder/Sonics franchise. Following the 2015-16 season, he left Oklahoma City to join forces with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and the Warriors.