Kevin Durant was “blindsided” when his name came up at the trade deadline.
He won’t be when it comes up this summer. In an appearance on NBA Today, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst doubled down on earlier reports that Durant and the Suns will part ways this summer.
Durant appeared on the Draymond Green Show this week and sounded like a guy ready to be traded, and he talked about why he turned down the chance to go to Golden State at the trade deadline.
“I didn’t want to move and I get why you want to trade me, simple fact that’s business but for me looking at it… we can play the season out and if that’s the decision you want to make in the off-season then we figure it out”@KDtrey5 explains why he vetoed the Suns-Warriors… pic.twitter.com/1Gfa3uJKZN
— The Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis (@DraymondShow) February 26, 2025
Phoenix, with the highest payroll in the league and on pace to miss even the play-in, will make changes this summer. Durant is likely one of them, and there will be plenty of interest in the future Hall of Famer.
While this has sparked speculation about Devin Booker possibly being available too. Don’t bet on it. Booker is a two-time All-NBA player in his prime at age 28, is under contract until the summer of 2028, and is beloved by the fan base who watched him grow when the team was terrible and were with him as one of the best players on an NBA Finals team — if Dallas trading Luka Doncic has one lesson, it’s be careful angering the fan base. Trading Booker would enrage the Suns’ fan base. Plus, tearing it down and tanking only works if the Suns can make a trade with the Rockets that bring a bunch of their own picks back, Phoenix doesn’t have the picks to do a tear-down rebuild otherwise. It’s far, far more likely they retool around Booker.
