Phoenix Suns
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The Phoenix Suns are looking to trade Kevin Durant, per ESPN's Shams Charania.
AKevin Durant trade is inevitable this summer.
According to ESPN’s senior NBA insider Shams Charania, the Phoenix Suns and Durant’s business partner, Boardroom CEO Rich Kleiman, have met multiple times this past week, evaluating several trade scenarios as they continue to work together in finding the 15-time NBA All-Star his next home.
“Teams that have expressed interest in Durant, sources said, mainly feature the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves and New York Knicks. Several wild-card suitors have made inquiries on Durant in the past seven to 10 days, sources said,” Charania wrote.
Among Durant’s suitors, the Timberwolves are +300 favorites to land Durant at offshore sportsbook Bovada, rated as one of the top mobile betting apps. The Rockets are close second at +350. A distant third are the Dallas Mavericks (+800) while the Spurs and Heat, tied at +1000, are betting long shots.
Talks between the Suns and Durant’s camp have escalated quickly after the hiring of Jordan Ott, a first-time head coach, to replace veteran and champion tactician Mike Budenholzer, who only lasted one season in the desert.
Ott’s hiring represents a fresh start for the Suns, who spectacularly failed with their Big Three experiment under veteran coaches, who have won championships. Like Budenholzer, the one he succeeded, Frank Vogel, who guided the Los Angeles Lakers to the 2020 championship, spent only one season in Phoenix.
Suns Moving on From Big 3 Model
NBA insider Chris Haynes earlier reported that the Suns are moving on from their failed Big 3 experiment despite bankrolling the most expensive roster led by Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal.
“One thing that I was told is that the Suns want to transition,” Haynes said on “Haynes’ Briefs” on April 18. “They want to move away from the model that they’ve been going after for the previous two years of accumulating star talent, star players and then trying to see if it can mesh on the court. They want to move away from that and they are going to move away from that.
“So, the purpose right now and the goal moving into next season is to accumulate defensive-minded tough players. They want to play a defensive-minded, grind-it-out type of game. They want to have a product on a court that fans can appreciate.”
Rockets Deal Preferred?
Kevin Durant, Rockets, Suns
Getty Kevin Durant of the Phoenix Suns dunks against Dillon Brooks of the Houston Rockets.
Among the teams that have expressed interest in Durant, the Rockets have the upper hand.
According to Kelly Iko of The Athletic, the Suns have contacted the Rockets since their seasons ended.
“Phoenix is aggressive in pursuit of a) trading Kevin Durant and b) regaining full control of their draft capital starting with the No. 10 pick in next month’s draft, team sources said. Since the conclusion of the season, Houston has fielded several calls from Phoenix, who have since gradually lowered their asking price for Durant, those sources said,” Iko wrote.
The Suns gave up four first-round picks and a pick swap on top of Cam Johnson and Mikal Bridges for Durant at the trade deadline in 2023. Most of those picks are now with the Rockets, who are in a great position to trade for Durant should they want to.
In March, The Arizona Republic’s Duane Rankin reported that the Suns were looking to regain those picks from the Rockets.