Tag: Rich Kleiman

Kevin Durant’s business manager believes NBA will have a 2020 champion

Rich Kleiman has changed his tune on the possibility of the NBA playing out the rest of 2019-20 in some manner.

At the start of April, Kevin Durant’s business manager, Rich Kleiman, didn’t think the 2019-20 season was salvageable. So much was still unclear regarding the novel coronavirus outbreak, leaving not only the NBA, NHL and MLB in a holding pattern, but the entire country, as well.

As of Wednesday, there’s still a lot of unknown. Kleiman still has some level of doubt regarding 2019-20, but when he spoke to Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated on ‘The Crossover’ podcast about the subject, he had changed his tune on the matter:

I believe somehow the NBA will figure out a way. I do really think so. I think two weeks ago I was asked that a few times and I felt this was unsalvageable. But I do think the NBA is going to try its hardest to put something out there to finish the season and declare a champion.

I think that if I was a betting man — and I am — that I would bet that [there] will be some return of play at some point this summer. But, I think it’ll just be a very unconventional and condensed version of what the season was in an attempt to decide a champion.

However, Kleiman also made sure to note players are living through this lockdown like fans, and that the league has to take into account 2020-21 and how this will all impact the members of the 2020 NBA Draft class.

But Kleiman remains confident in how the league will handle the situation because of the way NBA commissioner Adam Silver has approached everything up until now:

It feels like Adam as much as any commissioner, if not more, has a really incredible read of what to do and when to do it, and what the right thing to do is. And I know that he’s as intelligent as they come, so he does the due diligence and makes sure he covers every angle. In this instance, there’s so many different angles and so much information and so much unknown that it’s going to be hard to make a decision in any way prematurely. You can’t, kind of, try it out. This isn’t one of those things where you’re like,’ You know what? Let’s give it a shot.’ Because giving it a shot without checking out all the signs, and all the facts and getting all the clearance, is putting lives at risk. I think that obviously he’ll have to wait ’til the next big benchmark within our country. … Clearly, there won’t be fans. I don’t think there’s any chance there will be fans. I think we all know that.

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Kevin Durant’s business manager unsure if NBA season is ‘salvageable’

Kevin Durant’s manager Rich Kleiman is having some serious doubts about the remainder of the 2019-20 NBA season.

When the league started its hiatus due to the novel coronavirus, NBA commissioner Adam Silver stated the halt would last at least 30 days. It’s almost been that long — though it feels like it’s been longer — and other than the league’s continued communication among governors, there has been no sign of when play will resume.

At this stage, it’s not a reach to doubt a 2020 NBA champion will be crowned. Kevin Durant’s business manager Rich Kleiman is among those who doesn’t seem to think it’s possible for play to pick up. He explained why while on ESPN’s ‘The Will Cain Show’ on Friday:

It’s hard for me to imagine that an NBA season could return when you hear the numbers of casualties predicted, when you hear the number of people that will be inflicted by this. And to think that these guys can just go. And I do understand that all of us are working within these conditions for sure. Maybe some things are just not salvageable.

Kleiman continued:

In these lockout seasons, when the lockout ends, they don’t go, ‘OK, well let’s add another 32 games on the end of it.’ And I get it. They’ll have to be something to be figured out from the financial standpoint. And I’d love to be able to have a voice in that because I understand it’s real. But what I do know is that maybe, this just can’t be fixed.

Speculation that Kevin Durant and/or …

Speculation that Kevin Durant and/or Kyrie Irving would return to play has given some Nets fans hope that their favorite team will have an edge when —or if— the NBA comes back. Forget about it, says Rich Kleiman, KD’s agent, manager and business partner. He tamped down expectations for the former MVP Monday morning talking to ESPN’s Golic & Wingo. He called the idea of playing in June or July “not very realistic.” “Honestly, not very realistic from my standpoint, and not even spoken about,” Kleiman said.

The possibility of a summer return for …

The possibility of a summer return for the NBA season has led to speculation that injured superstar Kevin Durant could rejoin the Brooklyn Nets in time for their postseason push. But Durant’s longtime business partner Rich Kleiman tamped down expectations for the former MVP on Monday morning, telling Golic & Wingo that hopes of Durant playing in June or July are “not very realistic.” “Honestly, not very realistic from my standpoint, and not even spoken about,” Kleiman said.

Rich Kleiman: Kevin Durant returning after NBA’s hiatus ‘not even spoken about’

With the NBA on hiatus for an undetermined amount of time, there’s room to wonder if Kevin Durant will play for the Nets when play resumes.

The future of the 2019-20 NBA season is very much in question in the early stages of the league’s hiatus. A lot of it is out of the league’s control.

But if the NBA were to continue the season or pick things up at the start of the 2020 playoffs, other questions would arise. One of the major questions is centered around Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant.

Before the league’s hiatus, the superstar had ruled himself out for the remainder of 2019-20. But now that the league feels picking up play in mid-to-late June is a best case scenario, Durant making his return this season seems to be back in play.

However, Durant’s business manager, Rich Kleiman, doesn’t think that will happen. On Monday, Kleiman explained why on ESPN’s “Golic and Wingo”:

Honestly, not very realistic from my standpoint and not even spoken about. I mean, it feels like — it was clearly not something that was in the cards prior to all of this. And now I think, just like the rest of the world, I mean it’s hard to take anything more than day-by-day. But, again, I think that Kevin’s gonna figure out the space that he needs to be in to continue to rehab during this time. But, even that is hard to answer at this point with the new rules that were put in place last night.

 

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Kleiman, whose childhood bedroom was …

Kleiman gave his thoughts on Jackson …

Kleiman gave his thoughts on Jackson Wednesday, three days before the Nets parted ways with Kenny Atkinson, jolting open another vacancy. “I talked to him about it all the time – that you should be coaching in the NBA,’’ Kleiman said. “He’s one of those magnetic personalities. When you get people who are that special and people follow, it’s not always the most conventional way of doing things. That disruptiveness is sometimes what you need to become great. He’s a very spiritual guy. The idea is his time will come but if it’s not meant to be, it’s not meant to be.’’