On July 4th, for many Oklahoma City fans, learning franchise cornerstone Kevin Durant would not return was more emotionally draining than suffering defeat in the 2012 NBA Finals. His calculated decision blindsided adoring fans, devoted teammates, and the entire NBA; but the omni-present Adrian Wojnarowski of “The Vertical” gave us a hint that something was amiss when he tweeted this on July 2nd:
Sources: Kevin Durant had been recruiting Horford to OKC, but Horford eliminated OKC with no assurance Durant/Westbrook staying long-term.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) July 2, 2016
At the time, most assumed the wavering element against any long-term commitment to OKC was Russell Westbrook, a logical assumption.