The Nets have been looking to trade Kevin Durant for a while. The transfer season is here, and the Nets and the Phoenix look to bolster their squad. The Nets have set a high price for Kevin, and the Phoenix are interested. The question is, will teams trade? In this article, we examine whether the deal will go through, what is in it for the teams and what might hinder the trade. 

Kevin Durant pushed for a move from the Nets in late June. While you might have read the news as you peruse ways to play blackjack online across gambling sites in the US, you might have realized that Nets are yet to put a final price tag on him. However, rumor mills have it that the club owners are in advanced talks to quote a record-shattering figure. Durant is still under contract with the Nets for four years, so they are not in a hurry. 

Suppose we go by some of the past transfers from previous seasons. The Brooklyn Nets intend to make the most from selling Kevin Durant. A player of his stature will surely fetch a reasonable price. You can check what other teams in the league have gotten from selling the MVP, for example, what Oklahoma thunders earned for selling Paul George.

 The Nets are looking to make more. The Suns have been the favorites to go for Kevin. The deal may involve swaps with some Suns players mentioned for the trade. Names such as Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson have come up in the media.

Why Do The Suns Want Kevin Durant?

The Phoenix Suns are not interested in their center Deandre Ayton. John Gambandoro from KMVP-FM pointed out that they may use Ayton as a trade chip for the deal. The team reportedly has Durant’s blessing to negotiate the swap with the Brooklyn Nets. The Suns are looking for a playmaker who can make a three-point heavy attack. The current phoenix center, Ayton, has been falling short of that.

Kevin Durant has good offense versatility, something the Sun’s coach Monty William wants in his team. Durant can play in any system, and that is someone you want on your team. He can adapt to the sun’s free-flowing pass game that Coach Monty likes playing.

What makes Durant suitable for the Phoenix Suns?

  • He has morphed into a good defender- Durant was able to improve his defensive game when he was at the golden state warriors. He is now an excellent short-blocker and great perimeter defender. He is far better on defense than he ever gets credit for. As he ages, he can slide down to cover power forwards or assist on the post in zone defenses, and there are very few wings in the NBA who can consistently beat this player off the dribble in the fourth quarter.
  • He has good ball-handling skills- Durant uses his crossover to create space or get over his man skillfully.
  • He is a lethal scorer- he can pull from any transition and score over anybody, and he is a very consistent free throw shooter.

Why is Kevin Durant Interested in Moving to the Phoenix Suns?

James Jones, the general manager of the Phoenix Suns, must go and grab Kevin Durant. The 12-time All-Star and two-time NBA Finals MVP Durant claims he wants to leave Brooklyn and lists Phoenix as one of his potential new cities.

One of the main reasons Durant has set his eyes on moving to the Phoenix Suns is his close relationship with Coach Monty Williams. They were together for one year in Oklahoma in the 2015-2016 campaign. Monty was an associate head coach, and Durant was in his final year as a thunder player. They reunited in the 2016 summer Olympics, where the US won gold.

Other reasons that may draw Durant to the Phoenix Suns include his relationship with Devin Booker and respect for Chris Paul. 

At the start of NBA free agency on Thursday, the Suns have already signed standout guard Devin Booker to a supermax contract, and they have been a contender ever since Chris Paul joined the team. Therefore, it makes perfect sense that Durant would want to be the one to lead this team across the finish line and win a championship. Durant, an MVP, can change the team’s fortunes and lead them to a title.

What Do The Brooklyn Nets Want For Kevin Durant?

The Brooklyn nets are unwilling to drop the asking price, so the trade will involve more than two teams to get the deal done. The Nets are pushing to trade Durant before trading Irving. This could extensively change their roaster. The Nets reportedly want a massive group of draft picks back, fast-round picks, pick swaps, and an all-star player.

The Nets can trade Kevin with the Phoenix Suns if Ayton remains unsigned. The catch is that the deal will involve a three-way, where the Suns sell Ayton to get Kevin Durant, but not to the Nets. Nets may get offered Mikal bridges and Cam Johnson while Ayton head to the Utah Jazz. This deal fulfills the base year rule the Phoenix Suns are bound to regarding Ayton.

Trade Devin Booker For Kevin Durant?

The nets have been interested in Devin Booker for a while. Devin Booker is one of the most talented players in the league. The possibility of the Suns trading Booker is very low. The Suns general manager James Jones is not willing to trade Booker. Apart from that, there is some restriction for selling Devin Booker due to his recent pay hike. The deal cannot also happen because Brooklyn would have two players on rookie max extension.

Does Kevin Durant Want To Go To The Phoenix Suns, And Are There Other Options For Him?

Kevin Durant demanded the Nets trade him. The suns reportedly have Durant’s blessing to negotiate a swap with the Brooklyn nets. The other team that Durant could go to is Miami. Miami faces the same problem as the Phoenix Suns, i.e., they cannot do direct deals with the Brooklyn Nets. They must involve other teams in the trade. The Miami heat deal further gets complicated by Kevin going there to play with Jimmy Butler and being traded for him.

Why Is The Phoenix Deal Complicated?

There are other issues, but this one is open as long as Deandre Ayton is unsigned. Ayton’s “base-year” status prevents Phoenix from taking back his entire first-year salary as a match, and first, the Nets are too far past the luxury tax apron to take him back in a sign-and-trade. These two salary cap obscurities prevent an actual direct trade with Phoenix almost immediately.

The Nets purposefully sabotaged the Ayton celebration with their other free-agent signings. It becomes more challenging to remain below the apron in an Ayton sign-and-trade with the addition of O’Neale and the payment of Nic Claxton starting-center level Money, as well as some advantages.

Due to this, a different Ayton trade scenario looks like a possible outcome: one in which the Suns trade Ayton for Durant but not to the Nets. The removal of the apron makes a three-way Ayton-Durant deal significantly simpler. The Utah Jazz, who just traded Rudy Gobert to Minnesota, would undoubtedly serve as the primary middleman in this transaction.

Phoenix would still get constrained by the “base-year” restriction regarding Ayton deals. Still, if we estimate that Ayton would have an initial contract in the $25–27 million range, the Suns could equal Durant’s salary by paying Ayton an additional $22 million.

The deal is where the fun begins. Utah can complete this transaction by combining the Gobert trade with this one into one significant transaction in which they purchase Ayton, transfer some of the draft equity they obtained from Minnesota to the Suns, and pay out an additional $15–20 million in salary.

Who gets what out of this would be the subject of some heated negotiation. Phoenix would be asked for first-round picks and pick trades from the Nets, and the Utah Jazz’ would be asked for the same from the Suns. The tantalizing possibility of the first-round selection the Nets handed to Utah in exchange for O’Neale coming full round to them looms in the background. Whatever the outcome, Phoenix would probably have to give up a similar number of draft picks in the future to complete this trade as it did with the Gobert transaction. It’s worthwhile for a squad this competitive.

The parties involved in the deal still matter, though. Although the Suns would try to keep Bridges, I don’t see the Nets completing this transaction without him. The parties would probably, at some time, try to get San Antonio or Orlando to take a contract or two (Shamet, Gay, and Torrey Craig loom as possibilities).

Some of you might be curious about Donovan Mitchell’s involvement in the deal since he is the piece that is returning to Brooklyn. Keep your breath in check. Ben Simmons’ tenure with the Nets precludes Mitchell from moving to Brooklyn because an obscure CBA clause forbids a single team from having two “designated rookie” contracts obtained through trade.

What If The Phoenix Suns Cannot Land Kevin Durant?

Phoenix suns appear to not have enough assets to land Durant. This issue has made many NBA experts predict that Kevin Durant will not be moving to the west. On SiriusXM NBA Radio, Ellhasan said: “in the case of Phoenix, they can offer any of their drafts picks for the next seven years. If you are in Brooklyn, it sounds like you are looking for talents. It does not just pick. And so Cam Jackson and Mikal Bridge don’t move the needle. Deandre Ayton, God knows what is happening with his situation, and that’s the standoff in Phoenix.”

Suppose the Durant deal does not fall through. Ayton is left as the only option for the Phoenix Suns. The situation between Ayton and the Suns complicates things further. Suppose the team does not pay and play Ayton. The player might leave during the season, and the team might not get anything in return. Many NBA fans wonder if the Suns can end up with Durant and Ayton. The possibility is zero.

Will Durant’s History Of Injury Affect The Possible Move?

Durant has a history of injuries. Multiple injuries last season kept him out for a significant number of games. Injury combined with an aging star can indeed affect his game performance. Aging super-teams don’t win championships.

They will point out Laker’s team from the previous season and the Karl Malone-Gary Payton-Shaquille O’Neal-Kobe Bryant Lakers as examples. The fan may be right. The Phoenix Suns management will consider those concerns when deciding on the deal. If the Suns take him, they will be hoping to get good value for a player of his caliber and less injury risk.

Conclusion

Durant’s move to the Phoenix Suns depends on many issues, chiefly getting a three-team trade-off with the net and another team. The Ayton standoff with the Suns may affect the deal, too, if Ayton decides to stay with the team. Durant may also look at the Miami Heat situation and determine where he wants to be, whether in Miami or Phoenix.

Phoenix sun lack of assets to trade could make them miss on Durant. On the other hand, Durant’s age and injury-prone career may deter the team from pursuing the deal. Durant’s desire to come to Phoenix and close relationship with team members and the coach is another factor to consider.

The Brooklyn nets may look for a better offer from other teams with significant assent than Phoenix. The Nets are not interested in Ayton, and their real target in the Suns team is out of in supermax contract. Kevin Durant’s move to Phoenix depends on many factors, and there is no definite answer. We will have to wait and see for the white smoke to appear. We can say that Kevin Durant’s path to the Phoenix Suns is not clear.