Jabari Smith Jr., Kevin Durant, Suns
Getty
Kevin Durant of the Phoenix Suns is pressured by Fred VanVleet and Jabari Smith Jr. of the Houston Rockets.
The Phoenix Suns are nearing a trade involving 5-time All-Star Kevin Durant amid reports that talks with the Houston Rockets reached an impasse before the weekend.
According to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports, a Durant trade is imminent.
“A Kevin Durant deal is very close. Phoenix continues to work with multiple teams to get the deal they want and I expect it will happen today or tomorrow,” Gambadoro wrote on X on Sunday, June 22.
To which team? Gambadoro did not disclose.
The Rockets were considered favorites as they are one of the teams on Durant’s list of preferred destinations, according to ESPN’s senior NBA insider Shams Charania. The other two are the Miami Heat and the San Antonio Spurs.
Either of the three teams is where Durant is amenable to sign an extension.
Durant has one year and $54.7 million left in his current four-year, $190 million contract. He can sign a two-year, $112 million extension wherever he lands next. If he waits six months after the trade, he could fetch more — $124 million over two years, according to Charania.
Two more teams — Minnesota Timberwolves and Toronto Raptors — outside of Durant’s list have a puncher’s chance of landing Durant, who could be a one-year rental unless he changes his mind.
The Suns have Wednesday, June 25, the first day of the 2025 NBA Draft, as their artificial deadline for a Durant deal. They want to execute the selection of whatever draft pick they can get in the return package for the future Hall of Famer.
The Rockets have this year’s 10th pick, originally from the Suns.
Rockets Unwilling To Include Some of Their Young Core
According to Sam Amick of The Athletic, the Rockets and Suns have reached impasse on their trade conversations.
“I was told yesterday (Thursday) that Houston hadn’t talked to Phoenix since last week, and that call didn’t go particularly well. That could have changed by now, again that’s as of yesterday. They would love to have KD, but it’s on their price,” Amick said on on The Athletic NBA Daily.
Then on Friday, June 20, Clutchpoints’ Brett Seigel reported that the Rockets made a firm stance after the Suns demanded more.
“Jalen Green and the 10th pick in this year’s draft present a clear opportunity for the Rockets to swing a deal, but the Suns have demanded more, sources said. Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason, and Reed Sheppard are among the young talents in Houston that Phoenix has expressed interest in. The Rockets have not been willing to part with any of the three to this point,” Seigel wrote.
Jalen Green’s Tricky Trade Value
Kevin Durant, Suns
Getty Kevin Durant of the Phoenix Suns reacts against the Houston Rockets.
The Suns have done their due diligence on Green, gauging his value around the league in case they acquire him in a Durant deal, according to Michael Scotto of Hoopshype. But Seigel added they have not made much progress on that front.
But according to Kelly Iko of The Athletic, Green wants to remain in Houston.
“Green, whose name has been connected to Durant and other stars in trade rumors, is determined to improve upon his playoff struggles and wants to stay in Houston, league sources say,” Iko wrote.
Green, a former No. 2 pick, averaged just 13.3 points on 37.2% overall shooting and 29.5% from the 3-point line in the Rockets’ firs-round loss to the Golden State Warriors. The 23-year-old Rockets young star admitted the “lights were too bright” at the start of the playoffs. He averaged 21.0 points on 42.3% overall shooting and 35.4% from the 3-point line in the regular season where the Rockets clinched the No. 2 seed in the stacked Western Conference.
Suns’ High Asking Price
Brian Gregory, Suns
Getty Phoenix Suns newly promoted general manager Brian Gregory is on top of the Kevin Durant trade negotiations.
According to ESPN’s senior NBA writer Brian Windhorst, the Suns have a high asking price for Durant that has been dragging the trade talks.
“From what I am told, the Suns are looking for a comparable package for what they traded Kevin Durant, which is impact players and multiple draft assets,” Windhorst said on “NBA Today” on June 11. “I’m not sure they are going to be able to generate that because Durant is a couple of years older and his contract is short.”
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. Three of those picks are now with the Rockets, who are in a great position to trade for Durant should they want to.
If they aren’t the team close to finalizing a trade for Durant, the leaked news send an urgent message for them to either step or simply give up.