Kevin Durant’s ties to the Toronto Raptors run deeper than you think

Day 1 of NBA free agency kicked off with a blast that saw billions of dollars handed out in contracts to star players across the Association, but it was another move that sent the basketball world into a frenzy on one of the most important days of the NBA offseason calendar.

Kevin Durant, arguably a top-10 all-time talent in league history, officially requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets that day, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

The Phoenix Suns and Miami Heat were quickly mentioned as two teams that Durant tabbed as preferred destinations, but a few other possible landing spots have emerged in recent days. That includes the Toronto Raptors, who are described by Wojnarowski as ‘lurking’ in trade discussions.

Today alone, the Raptors have the second place odds to land Durant this offseason according to FanDuel with +300 odds. They only trail the Phoenix Suns who stand at +150, placing the Raptors with roughly a 30 percent chance behind Phoenix’s 57 percent. Even still, for the Raptors to be considered so highly in this two-horse race should be reason alone enough for fans and management to have optimism in this case.

It’s no secret that the Raptors haven’t had the best of luck in terms of recruiting star free agent talents to play in the North. Between the cold weather (which really isn’t that bad), tax-related reasons and the uncertainty of playing for the only team in another country (the majority of NBAers are American), Toronto hasn’t had many bonafide superstars since the team’s inception in 1995. 

And while for the most part, Durant likely fits this mold on the surface, the two-time Finals MVP actually has a deeper connection to the franchise than most fans realize.

Durant was a guest on "The Dan Patrick Show” in 2013, in the midst of his fourth consecutive All-Star season with the Oklahoma City Thunder, and what he told Patrick when responding to a question about his childhood dream of playing in the NBA left basketball fans stunned.

"Believe it or not, I wanted to play for the Toronto Raptors," Durant said. "That was my favorite team growing up."

Patrick, surprised, continued on with the question, asking KD what was so enticing about the lone franchise in the North.

"I was a big Vince Carter fan, and I just liked their jerseys, to be honest," Durant continued. "They were the new team when I was growing up, so I wanted to be a part of that. ... Just the enthusiasm [Carter] showed, his athleticism, how he brought Toronto from being one of the newer teams in the league to almost going to the Finals. He changed the culture there in Toronto."

Obviously words uttered nearly a decade ago aren’t enough to automatically roll out the red carpet in Toronto over the Kevin Durant sweepstakes. But even until this day, Durant continues to echo his respect for the Raptors, exemplified in his high praise and compliments to rookie Scottie Barnes after Toronto’s first game of the season against Brooklyn – a game that Barnes, the future of the franchise, officially commanded the respect from one of the league’s all-time greats.

Barnes’ possible inclusion in a Durant trade has been a topic of debate and discussion among Raptors fans. However, if it’s Durant’s goal to play with Barnes in pursuit of a championship, expect Masai Ujiri and management to do anything they can to bring KD and Scottie together.

After all, former Raptor Greivis Vasquez, who is a friend and former high school teammate of Durant’s in Maryland, declared on TSN 1050 back in 2014 that Durant would lead the Raptors to a championship one day.

“I think he'll have statues right outside the ACC,” Vasquez said.

Vasquez’ comments then were about Durant’s looming 2016 free agency, but he may not be wrong after all on his take. Raptors fans never forget.