OKC May Feel Economic Impact After KD's Departure

An Oklahoma County sheriff's deputy was on duty outside KD's restaurant in Bricktown Monday evening after news of Kevin Durant’s decision to sign with the Golden State Warriors.

Several people posed for pictures outside the restaurant.

Lateria Allen said she was upset when she learned he's leaving, as a basketball fan and as the general manager of Brickopolis.

“It was like, 'oh my gosh, are you serious?'” she said. “Then my coworkers kind of chimed in considering we are a part of the T-shirt business, so we were looking at it, trying to see what we’re going to do.”

At Brickopolis, all Thunder gear was on sale, and all KD gear went for half price because of the news.

“We get people from all over town, all over the world that come in here and they want Durant apparel and we were able to furnish that. But now – not so much,” she said.

Allen said Durant's star power no doubt helped their business and brought people to Brickopolis just a few blocks from Chesapeake Arena. Even without him now, she's optimistic about the future.

“The arena’s not going anywhere, the team’s not going anywhere. It’s just about finding another star,” she told News 9.

Bricktown Brewery assistant general manager Garrett Sullivan is also hoping for the best.

“People will still want to know how the Thunder are doing and how successful they’re going to be. Could potentially even spark an interest in early season games more than normal because there’s a question in their heads,” he said.

But he said there is some concern about how his decision could impact businesses down the road.

“Extra games are the ones that bring you the extra money. So everybody looks at a budget in a year and numbers change if you don’t want to include playoffs. You just can’t ignore the dollars there,” he added.