Phoenix Suns star forward Kevin Durant is still up for grabs via trade, and Miami Heat fans are wondering if the former MVP will finally end up in South Florida this time after the team had some unsuccessful pursuits of him in the past.
A number of teams are involved in the race for the 15-time All-Star, and the Heat are among them. However, based on some recent comments from Ethan J. Skolnick of Five Reasons Sports, the leaderboard in the Durant sweepstakes has been changing frequently.
“The Miami Heat are still in this,” Skolnick said Sunday. “… I’m not gonna say who’s in the lead. That changes minute to minute.”
It’s worth noting that on Monday, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said the Minnesota Timberwolves have been the “most aggressive team” in the Durant sweepstakes.
The Phoenix Suns are not ‘excited’ about the current offers they’re receiving from the Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs, and Houston Rockets, per @WindhorstESPN
(🎥 @GetUpESPN / h/t @GormanChristoph )
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— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 16, 2025
Durant may still be a player who’s capable of changing the championship race in the NBA. Although he’s 36 years old and will turn 37 in September, he has shown impressive longevity and remains one of the game’s top scorers.
This season, he averaged 26.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game while shooting 52.7 percent from the field, 43.0 percent from beyond the arc and 83.9 percent from the line. By some measures, it was one of the most efficient scoring seasons of his decorated career.
The Heat could really use a lift after going through a trying 2024-25 season in which they lost star forward Jimmy Butler and finished below .500. Miami did sneak into the playoffs but was demolished in the first round by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Durant, a two-time champion thanks to his time with the Golden State Warriors, knows what it takes to win a ring in the NBA, and he’d certainly get the Heat closer to contention in the Eastern Conference. The question is whether or not he’ll get that opportunity in Miami.
The Heat may have the assets to put together the “most enticing” offer the Suns are going to see, but it remains to be seen how far Miami will go to get a deal done for Durant. It’s been suggested that the Heat don’t think the upside of a potential Durant deal is as much of a “slam dunk” as their deal was for star big man Shaquille O’Neal many years back.