It’s been a hot topic around the NBA since Kevin Durant’s name surprisingly popped up at the trade deadline: The Suns and Durant are expected to part ways this summer. “I want my career to end on my terms, that’s the only thing,” Durant said on The Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis a couple of weeks ago — and because whichever team trades for him will want him to sign an extension, Durant has some control over the process.
What do the Suns want out of the process? The well-connected Duane Rankin at The Arizona Republic broke that down Monday.
Sources informed The Republic the most ideal return on a Durant trade is regaining three first-round picks and a young player as part of a multi-team deal tied to getting under the second apron.
That’s a hard-to-attain list of goals. The draft picks were likely at the top of the list on the basketball side because the Suns don’t control any of their first-round picks from now until 2032 (due to trades or swaps). The Suns may need to attach one of those picks to Bradley Beal if the team wants to move on from his contract. Plus, it’s hard to keep costs down without drafting young players who can contribute on some level.
Ownership may prioritize getting under the second tax apron — Phoenix has a $152 million tax bill this season, on top of $214 million salary. That’s a league-high $366 million bill for a team struggling to make the play-in.
Phoenix will not be looking to tear everything down and rebuild, this will be a quick retooling with Devin Booker at the center of everything — he is under contract for three years after this season. However, the clock is ticking, if a couple of years into this retooling Booker isn’t happy the Suns could find themselves in the same position they are now, with a star who has a year left on his contract and is looking to get out.
Teams who have come up as potentially interested in Durant include Dallas, Miami, New York, Minnesota and Houston, and that is likely just the tip of the iceberg. Those teams are not going to put together the kind of package the Suns are looking for just to rent Durant, they are going to ask him to sign a two-year, $122 million contract extension — that gives KD some leverage in the talks. He will want to go to a team where his addition makes them a legit title contender.
Which one of those teams has the trade assets to make the Suns happy? We will find out this summer.
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