Kevin Durant is not doing anything to shut down speculation that he has a tense relationship with his head coach.
Durant and coach Mike Budenholzer had another tense exchange on the sideline during a timeout late in the first quarter of Sunday’s game between the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers. ESPN’s broadcast showed Budenholzer speaking to Durant, and Durant standing up and appearing agitated with Budenholzer in response.
Kevin Durant showing his frustration during a timeout. pic.twitter.com/bkVqoFkHHR
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) March 16, 2025
Kevin Durant and Mike Budenholzer argue
Sideline reporter Katie George said on the air that the exchange stemmed from some comments on how to defend Luka Doncic, who scored 17 points with three three-pointers in the first half of the game.
“They were just going back and forth about how they needed to guard Luka Doncic,” George said. “Bud had said, ‘Are you going to guard him? Are you going to contest? Are you going to close out on those threes?’ KD said he was getting cross-matched, and that was what led to the open threes. They were passionately working it out.”
It certainly was not the biggest blow-up we have ever seen, but it will attract attention considering something similar happened less than two weeks earlier. Durant had downplayed that exchange and said it was blown out of proportion, and would probably say the same about this one.
Even if this was nothing, the situation will be scrutinized, as the Suns have been a mess this season. They entered Sunday’s game at 31-36 and are not even in the Play-In Tournament as things stand. In addition, Durant is widely expected to be traded this summer. With all that in mind, people are certainly going to think some underlying tension is one of the reasons the Suns have underachieved so badly this season.