On Tuesday night, Kevin Durant will step onto the court at the Chase Center, facing the Warriors’ fans for the first time since his departure for Brooklyn, marking the NBA’s 2023-24 opening night extravaganza.

Warriors enthusiasts should give him a hero’s welcome. Durant spent three seasons in Golden State, during which he clinched two Finals MVP awards while helping the Warriors secure back-to-back NBA championships. In those years, he averaged an impressive 25.8 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game, earning All-NBA honors each season he played for the team.

But does this stellar performance merit the retirement of his jersey by the Warriors? Joe Lacob, the Warriors’ co-executive chairman and CEO, believes it does, and when asked about it, Durant concurred. KD shared his perspective with Marc Spears of ESPN’s Andscape.

Regarding Lacob and the potential retirement of his jersey, Durant expressed, “He should. Look at the résumé. That would warrant me to get a jersey retirement, right? Do I want to be honored by a franchise I put work in for? Of course, I would love that. I had some great moments there. I built some solid relationships there. Yeah, man. Hell yeah, that would be sweet. I love that organization, man. I love my time there, seriously. Me leaving, people shouldn’t doubt that, because I left there.”

Lacob had previously indicated that no one would wear Durant’s No. 35 while he was in charge, suggesting a potential jersey retirement down the line. While it may happen, it’s likely to occur after the jerseys of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green have been honored in the arena’s rafters.

Durant harbors no ill feelings about his time in Golden State; instead, he views it as a pivotal chapter in his career that prepared him for what he hopes to achieve with the Suns. For him, it was a special period in his life. Although Durant has previously visited the Chase Center, the lone game played by the Nets there in 2021 occurred during COVID restrictions, with no fans in attendance.

The upcoming encounter will be different, and Tuesday night will provide a firsthand look at how Warriors fans respond to Durant’s return.