The Phoenix Suns might not have enough momentum left to make a Playoff run in what’s been a rough 2024-25 season. The 28-32 franchise is 3.5 games behind the No. 10 seed and has an incongruent roster with chemistry and stylistic issues that coach Mike Budenholzer can’t overcome.
The best way to move forward might be trading a player like Kevin Durant in the offseason, especially after the Suns already tried moving off him in the winter. Shams Charania of ESPN reports that if the Suns fail to make the Playoffs, the team will start retooling in the summer with Durant as the first player to be moved.
“The stakes are high. Unless there’s a significant run here into the Playoffs for the Phoenix Suns, league sources believe there will be real changes in Phoenix. From a roster standpoint, that likely starts with Kevin Durant.”
“When we look back to the trade deadline, Kevin Durant was blindsided when he was involved in trade conversations. But this offseason, from my understanding, what it would look like is that Durant and the Suns will work together in any potential trade to a contender in a trade scenario.”
“I’d expect 4-6 contenders with real involvement for Durant, he’s still playing at a really high level. He’s extension eligible in the offseason… Everything with Durant hangs in the balance.”
Durant’s eventual departure from the Suns has been heavily discussed since the team tried trading him in the winter. The forward even had to explain why he turned down a move to the Golden State Warriors because the Suns’ attempts at trading him quickly became well-known around the NBA.
The forward didn’t want to adjust mid-season and will have a greater pool of teams to select from in the winter. He’s averaging 26.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 4.3 assists this season. The 36-year-old will be on an expiring $54.7 million contract, so the Suns can’t really move him without his input because he could be unlikely to re-sign with whichever team he’s moved to.
Potential Destinations For Kevin Durant
With this looking to be the third move in the last six seasons, it doesn’t look like Durant will carry the value he did even last season. With his expiring contract, no team will be willing to come close to forking out the assets the Suns did for Durant in 2023. Nonetheless, some interested teams could give up a big chunk of assets for the short-term excellence Durant brings to a team.
The biggest rumor right now links Durant to the Dallas Mavericks. Durant played college hoops in Texas and could join a veteran-led squad in Dallas featuring former NBA and Team USA teammates Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, and Anthony Davis. A deal like this will likely see Dallas lose multiple key role-players including PJ Washington, Naji Marshall, Daniel Gafford, and potentially Klay as well.
Another big threat could be the Golden State Warriors, who openly recruited Durant in the winter. While the Jimmy Butler acquisition and extension shows they’ve committed to Butler, they might not be against loading up on top-tier talent in Stephen Curry’s twilight.
The cost of a Durant trade for the post-Butler Warriors will be high. If Steph, Jimmy, and Draymond Green are safe, the likely way to acquire Durant is by handing Jonathan Kuminga and an inflated contract extension to try and salary-match for a Durant acquisition primarily with future trade assets.
More teams will definitely stick their paws in, but this could be a drawn-out summer trade saga, especially if the Suns aren’t satisfied with the offers on their table.
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