Kevin Durant has spent the last two-plus years toiling away on a Phoenix Suns team destined for greatness. In reality, they will need a miracle to make the Play-In this year after crashing out of the playoffs when the Minnesota Timberwolves swept them in the first round last year. Naturally, that means it’s time for Kevin Durant to weigh anchor and start looking for his next home, which he’ll leave in the dust again when he becomes a free agent in the summer of 2026.
After reports surfaced that the Timberwolves made a late charge to secure Durant at the trade deadline, Brian Windhorst went on First Take on Thursday morning. He said the Timberwolves are a team to watch in the Durant sweepstakes this off-season.
On the surface, Minnesota’s interest in Durant makes sense. He’s an all-time great, two-time NBA Champion, MVP, 15-time All-Star, and one of, if not the best, pure scorer the game has ever seen. Anthony Edwards loves him, and adding the 6’11” sharpshooter would immediately signal that the Wolves were all-in to win a championship next season.
However, as much as seeing Kevin Durant in a Timberwolves jersey would satisfy my 16-year-old desires, Tim Connelly should proceed with extreme caution when pursuing Kevin Durant this offseason.
It might seem stupid for a fan of a team that’s made it out of the first round of the playoffs twice in 36 years to turn their nose up at one of the 20 greatest players in NBA history. Still, trading for Kevin Durant would bring long-awaited glory or full-blown franchise annihilation. KD’s career has gone in wildly varying directions across his 17 years in the NBA.
Durant won an MVP and took the Oklahoma City Thunder to the NBA Finals during his nine years in Seattle/OKC. Then, he turned heel and signed with the 73-win Golden State Warriors, winning two titles and two Finals MVPs before injuring his Achilles in the 2019 finals, signing with the Brooklyn Nets in free agency, sitting out a year, and setting up one of the most dysfunctional big threes in NBA history.
He left Brooklyn after 2.5 years, forcing his way to Phoenix, where he led the Suns to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs in 2023 and an embarrassing sweep to the Timberwolves last season. The Suns have been one of the most disappointing teams in the league this season. After a 9-2 start, the Suns are 20-31 and sit 2.5 games behind the Dallas Mavericks for 10th place in the West.
For whatever reason, dysfunction has followed Durant everywhere he’s gone post-Warriors. The Timberwolves don’t need to add to the decades of dysfunction they are desperately trying to escape. Durant will be 37 years old at the beginning of next season, with a lengthy injury history and one year left on his contract. To his credit, Durant is putting up an admirable two-way season in his year-36 season, averaging 26.9 points, six rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game. Still, he can’t keep the Suns from sinking four years after Devin Booker led the franchise to the Finals.
On the other hand, it’s Kevin F—ing Durant. You’d have to be an idiot not to want him on your team.
He’s the third greatest player of this generation behind LeBron James and Steph Curry. He’s a four-time scoring champion, a 38.8 percent career three-point shooter, and still plays competitive defense with his 7’0” wingspan causing issues on the wing.
Durant also brings out the best in Anthony Edwards anytime they meet on the same team or opposition. The Wolves have struggled all season and have finally put a few decent weeks together. They are 35-29, seventh place in the West, and five games ahead of the Suns. Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo are now finding their footing after arriving in Minnesota as part of the Karl-Anthony Towns trade. We still aren’t sure if the Wolves are better with or without Rudy Gobert. And Jaden McDaniels is finally taking the leap we’ve been waiting years for, so perhaps now isn’t the time to rock the boat again.
Tim Connelly has made huge moves every year since he took over Minnesota’s front office in 2022. He traded for Rudy Gobert in July 2022. He also traded D’Angelo Russell for Mike Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker in 2023. And Connelly consummated the KAT trade days before training camp started this season. Connelly’s willingness to shake things up and the potential for the new owner syndrome when Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore take over for Glen Taylor and the path to a Durant trade becomes even clearer.
The Wolves and the Suns are in the dreaded second apron, so swinging a big-time trade could be nearly impossible. The rise of Rob Dillingham, Terrence Shannon Jr, and Jaylen Clark, and the likelihood the Wolves will get the Detroit Pistons’ first-round pick this season, give the Timberwolves plenty of assets to pull off a blockbuster.
Everything depends on who the Wolves would be willing to send to Phoenix in a trade. I would have packed Jaden McDaniels’ bags for him two months ago. However, he’s averaging 19.9 points and 8.4 rebounds per game since the All-Star Break and finally looks like a legitimate running mate alongside Anthony Edwards and Naz Reid. Julius Randle can opt out of his contract at the end of the season, and Naz Reid is a free agent this summer. Some combination of McDaniels, Randle, Dillingham, and picks could get a year of Durant’s services in Minnesota.
If the Wolves swing a trade for Durant, they must win a championship next season to make things worth it. There’s no guarantee that Durant will stick around after his current contract is up, and the outgoing talent could drain Minnesota’s coffers for the second time in three years. Trading him for an aging legend is risky, but it could be just what the Timberwolves need to win now before Anthony Edwards hits his prime.