The Phoenix Suns have had an incredibly rough offseason after one of the all-time terrible endings to a season. The 64-win Suns were eliminated from the second round of the playoffs by an underdog Dallas Mavericks team that blew the Suns out in Phoenix in Game 7 in one of the most one-sided Game 7’s in playoff history.
As the franchise was recovering from that, they were suddenly thrust into rumors of being the frontrunners to acquire Kevin Durant in a trade after KD made a trade request to leave the Nets. Suns backup guard Cameron Payne was not happy when he heard that his team are interested in trading for Durant and revealed so on media day, thanking the Lord because the trade never ended up happening.
Cameron Payne said his heart dropped when he first heard about the Kevin Durant trade rumors
"Thank the Lord it didn't happen."
(Via @GeraldBourguet ) pic.twitter.com/obCtr7lscw
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) September 26, 2022
Payne could have been one of the pieces in the trade to be sent from Phoenix to Brooklyn. Considering the career revival Payne has done with the Suns, he wouldn’t be thrilled about leaving or playing in an offense where his role would be limited even further behind Chris Paul, Devin Booker, and Kevin Durant.
Could The Suns Have Made A Competitive Offer For Kevin Durant?
The Suns were early contenders to acquire Durant but fell out of the race as the offseason progressed and the Nets got stronger offers from other teams. The Boston Celtics could have given the Nets the best returning player in a deal through Jaylen Brown. Other teams like the Memphis Grizzlies and New Orleans Pelicans had heavy draft equity that they could have offered.
The Suns’ best possible player to include in a trade was Mikal Bridges, who was their most valuable defensive player last season. Thankfully, KD is still on the Nets and the Suns can focus on building continuity with the roster they have had for the last 2 seasons.
The franchise is going to add a piece for Jae Crowder after the veteran demanded a trade prior to the beginning of training camp. They’re not adding Durant but the Suns can make this a useful trade and get a good piece for Crowder if they can.
