After weeks of trade talks with multiple teams, the Phoenix Suns finally moved on from Keivn Durant on Sunday.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Suns agreed to send Durant to the Houston Rockets for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 pick in the 2025 draft and five second-round picks.
This is a massive move by both sides as the Suns add a young guard in Green, a great defender and leader in Brooks along with much-needed draft capital as they try to rebuild their roster around Devin Booker.
For the Rockets, they add a future Hall of Famer in Durant to a young roster that is fresh off finishing second in the Western Conference last season.
Jalen Green and Kevin Durant
The Phoenix Suns have made a decision about Jalen Green's role.
Thomas Shea-Imagn Images
While the Suns finally ended their saga with Durant and sent him to the Rockets, there have been many reports of trades that they did not accept from other teams interested in Durant.
Among those teams were the Cleveland Cavaliers who, according to Yahoo Sports’ Kevin O’Connor, offered two-time All-Star Darius Garland to the Suns in an attempt to land Durant.
This is a massive report by O’Connor as it appears the Cavaliers were willing to move on from one of their star players to add Durant to their roster alongside Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley to help chase a title next season.
Of course, the Suns have been in desperate need of a starting point guard over the last few seasons and it is a major surprise that they would not be interested in Garland, though Cleveland may not have offered Phoenix anything else in return.
May 9, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) dribbles the ball while Indiana Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith (23) defends during game three of the second round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images
May 9, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) dribbles the ball while Indiana Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith (23) defends during game three of the second round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images
Despite this, adding Garland next to Booker in the backcourt would have created a dynamic guard duo that could help the Suns not only immediately, but also in the future due to him being only 25 years old.
While that may be the case, it is clear that the Suns were more interested in Houston’s offer for Durant and the star forward might have also had some leverage as the Rockets were one of his preferred destinations where the Cavaliers were not.