Over the last 48 hours, speculation has increased that Phoenix Suns superstar Kevin Durant could be on the move ahead of Thursday’s trade deadline.
Durant, 36, still has one more season on his contract before hitting unrestricted free agency as a 38-year-old. He’s still playing at an extremely high level, but the Suns find themselves in the bottom half of a loaded Western Conference, currently the ninth seed.
If the Suns wanted to move Durant and retool for the future, they could still get a haul. These three teams could be seamless destinations for KD:
Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks already made one jaw-dropping trade in the last few days when they sent franchise cornerstone Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis.
Now, rumor has it that GM Nico Harrison is eyeing Durant to pair with Davis and Kyrie Irving to help the Mavericks “win now” after moving on from Doncic. Dallas is the 11th seed in the West, so this move would be linear at best for Durant’s chances of winning another title.
Also, didn’t we try Durant and Irving together? Add in Davis, and this is just a bad, older remix of the 2019 Brooklyn Nets.
While some might have the other Texas team (the Houston Rockets, who are one of the best stories in the NBA) as a destination for Durant, Marc Stein reported that they are currently unlikely to make a big trade in-season. They want to see what their young core can do.
Unless Harrison’s Mavericks make another bold move, Durant won’t be making a return to the Lone Star State anytime soon.
Golden State Warriors
The Warriors are another struggling, aging team in the Western Conference that is refusing to embrace a rebuild.
Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are not getting any younger—yet the Warriors are in desperate trade pursuit of Durant or 40-year-old LeBron James at the deadline.
Unlike pairing Durant with Irving and Davis, we saw him make sweet music with Curry and the Warriors. They dominated the NBA Finals rivalry against the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2017 and 2018 before Durant decided to bolt out of California.
If the Warriors want one more chance at a championship in the Curry era, adding Durant at the deadline might be their best bet.
Oklahoma City Thunder
We aren’t done with Durant reunions.
The Thunder have finally rebounded after Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden left them for dead. While it took almost 10 years, the Thunder have done a tremendous job stockpiling young players and draft picks to make this a dream rebuild.
And they’re reaping the benefits as the No. 1 seed in the West and the best record in the NBA.
While there’s something to be said about not throwing off momentum and chemistry, Durant finishing what he started in Oklahoma City and delivering the Thunder an NBA title would be a storybook ending.
