Kevin Durant handing in a trade request to the Brooklyn Nets was the biggest talking point of the offseason for months. A player of his caliber becoming available for trade isn’t something you see very often and the whole saga, which began on the 30th of June, just kept dragging on until KD finally withdrew his request last month.
The Nets were rewarded for refusing to succumb to pressure from Durant as they held out for an offer that was acceptable to them. They now get to keep him for this upcoming season at the very least, which means their championship window remains open as the franchise continues its quest for their first NBA title.
Kevin Durant Explained Why He Requested A Trade
There was a lot of speculation on just why Durant suddenly wanted out as he refused to speak on the matter, which led to rumors flying around all over the place. Some felt it was because of the way the organization handled the Kyrie Irving situation, while others stated that he wanted Kyrie out. There was nothing definitive, but Durant finally addressed the matter on the team’s media day for the upcoming season.
Kevin Durant on his trade request back in June:#NBATwitter #NBAMediaDay pic.twitter.com/5KBcs9A8Gw
— 𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐢𝐧' 𝐍𝐁𝐀 (@_Talkin_NBA) September 26, 2022
“It was a lot of uncertainty around our team last year. I committed to this organization for 4 years last summer with the idea that we were gonna be playing with that group that we kinda went on that little round, went to the second round with. I felt like another year of that, us being healthy we were building something towards the future. So then as the season went on, you seen what happened with our season. Guys in and out of the lineup, injuries, just a lot of uncertainty which filled some doubt in my mind about the next 4 years of my career. I mean I’m getting older, I want to be in a place that’s stable and try to build a championship culture so I had some doubts about that. I voiced them to Joe (Tsai) and we move forward from there.”
While it is understandable that he wanted to move to a situation with more stability at this stage of his career, it was the players, Kyrie in particular, who caused all of the instability. That wasn’t down to anything the Nets did, and the only blame you can place on them is that they allowed the players to run the show.
Kevin Durant Said He Understood Why The Nets Placed A High Price Tag For Him
The Nets finally did get tired of listening to the demands of their star players when they stood firm and refused to budge from their high asking price for KD. No kind of pressure was going to see them back down there and Durant said he understood why the price was so high when asked if he was surprised he is still on the team.
Is Kevin Durant surprised that he's still a Net?
"No. I know I'm that good that you're not just going to give me away. I know who I am." pic.twitter.com/tShm3swMYk
— Nets Videos (@SNYNets) September 26, 2022
“No. I know I’m that good that you’re just not going to just give me away. That’s one thing I did appreciate about Sean and Joe, that’s like ‘You’re too great for us to give you away. Just that easy, that simple.’ So I understand that, I know who I am.”
A bit of a brag there from Durant, but as he says, they were not going to just give him away. Players of his caliber do not grow on trees and when you have one of them, you’re going to do everything possible to keep them.
Durant was a bit annoyed by something else recently, as ESPN released their list of the top 100 players for the 2022-23 season. He was ranked outside the top 5, down at 8th and he can prove them all wrong by balling out and he is more than capable of doing that.
