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FAQ about KD2DC in light of the Wizards hiring Scott Brooks

By Jake Whitacre
NBA: Oklahoma City Thunder at Minnesota Timberwolves Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

Q: Did the Wizards hire Scott Brooks to help their odds of signing Kevin Durant?

Hopefully not. If they did, it was a costly gamble. They're paying Scott Brooks $35 million over the next five years with no guarantee that it will help their odds of signing Durant.

Q: Are we sure Kevin Durant didn't have a hand in getting Scott Brooks fired in Oklahoma City?

No we're not. So if the Wizards did hire Brooks just to help their KD2DC odds, it's probably a terrible idea.

Q: If they are just signing Brooks to go all in on KD, is it the riskiest move ever?

Nah. Just last year, the Suns paid Tyson Chandler $52 million last summer because they thought it would help their odds of signing LaMarcus Aldridge. Compared to that, this really isn't that bad.

Q: What are the top priorities for free agents when it comes to who they sign with?

  1. Money.
  2. Money.
  3. The chance to have a big role.
  4. The chance to be on a winning team. (3 & 4 are reversible depending on the age of a player).
  5. The appeal of the city.
  6. Money.
  7. Familiarity with people in the organization.
  8. The head coach. Maybe.

Q: Do people close to Kevin Durant think the Brooks hiring helps the Wizards' chances?

Chris Mannix of The Vertical doesn't believe it will help:

Durant isn't coming to Washington. It has nothing to do with Brooks, who Durant respects and has even missed at various points this season. For all of Brooks' flaws, Durant knew this: He held everyone accountable, and his track record of player development defined him. Durant and Russell Westbrook became MVP-caliber players under Brooks, while the likes of James Harden, Serge Ibaka and Reggie Jackson thrived, too.

Durant isn't bound for Washington, friends say, because … it's Washington, it's home, and, like so many athletes, Durant isn't all that keen on returning to play in the city in which he grew up. Friends, family – some real, some claiming to be – all come out of the woodwork in those situations, and Durant, who has tightened his inner circle considerably in recent years, isn't interested in dealing with them. His lone trip to D.C. this season was stressful, league sources told The Vertical, reinforcing to friends that wherever Durant signs next summer, Washington won't be it.

Q: Have people misjudged the willingness of a star player to return to where they grew up in the past?

Yes.

Q: Does John Wall think the Brooks hiring helps the Wizards' chances?

Not based on what he had to say to Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post:

Wall believes a coaching change was required after a disappointing 41-41 campaign and that Brooks is the right fit for the franchise. And he wants to make one thing clear: Brooks is coming to Washington, first and foremost, to coach the Wizards. Not to lure Kevin Durant.

"We signed Scotty Brooks to win an NBA championship," Wall said in a phone interview Friday night. "We didn’t sign Scotty Brooks to say, ‘Okay, Scotty, go get him. You got to bring us Kevin Durant.’ We got Scotty Brooks because we feel like he can help John Wall and make him a better player and make our team get to the next step. We didn’t get Scotty Brooks just to get Kevin Durant. That’s not what Scott is on board to do. And I hope everybody doesn’t expect just because we got Scotty Brooks, he’s automatically going to get K.D., he’s going to automatically jump."

Q: If Wall said the Brooks hiring would help the recruitment of Durant, wouldn't that count as tampering?

Probably.

Just sayin'.

Q: If the Wizards don't sign Kevin Durant, is hiring Scott Brooks a failure before he even coaches a game?

No! Durant or no Durant, Brooks has a chance to be a great coach for the Wizards. Even if you're not optimistic about his chances of elevating the Wizards into a contender, you have to concede he should at least be an upgrade over the previous coaching staff.

Q: If Durant signs a one-year deal with the Thunder, are the Wizards going to run it back and fill the roster with players on one-year deals to keep their options open for next summer?

Probably not. However, they could still keep a toe dipped in the KD2DC waters beyond this summer.

Q: Are you insinuating KD2DC could extend beyond this summer?

Yuuuuuuup. If there's one team out there who would try to use free agency to fill as many of OKC's needs as possible to address in the chance that the Thunder would consider trading Kevin Durant down the road, it would be the Wizards.

Q: So what you're saying is that we'll probably never stop talking about KD2DC?

Never.

Q: Ugh.

That's not a question.