NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant will decline his player option and become an unrestricted free agent, but will re-sign with the Golden State Warriors, a person with knowledge of the situation told USA TODAY Sports on Monday.

The person requested anonymity because formal negotiations have not yet taken place.

Durant will likely take less than the maximum salary in order to improve the Warriors’ odds of retaining their free agents.

Steph Curry is also a free agent and is expected to sign a designated veteran’s maximum for five years and US$205 million. At the conclusion of last season, Curry was the Warriors’ fourth-highest paid player at US$12.1 million, trailing Durant, Thompson and Green.

The Warriors are also trying to retain free agents Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston, Zaza Pachulia and other role players.

Durant was due to make US$27.7 million this season. But he is expected to sign a one-year deal with another option so he can sign his long-term max deal next summer.

The Warriors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers four games to one to win the NBA championship and Durant averaged 35.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, 5.4 assists to win the Finals MVP.

Durant, who had been criticized for signing with the Warriors in the offseason because he was just chasing a ring, told U.S. media that it was more about him being part of this team.

“Yeah, I hear all the narratives throughout the season that I was joining, I was hopping on bandwagons, I was letting everybody else do the work,” Durant said. “But then that was far from the truth. I came in and tried to help my team. Like I said, tried to be myself, be aggressive and sacrifice as well.”(SD-Agencies)