UPDATE: Per ESPN’s Shams Charania, Durant prefers to be traded to the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, or Miami Heat.
UPDATE: Durant will be traded as early as next week, per The Arizona Republic.
UPDATE: According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Phoenix Suns are focused on trading Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets, Minnesota Timberwolves, San Antonio Spurs, New York Knicks and Miami Heat.
There were high hopes for the Phoenix Suns when they made a blockbuster move in February of 2023, trading for Kevin Durant to pair the superstar with Devin Booker. Three years later, and with just one playoff victory to show for, the tune has shifted in Phoenix. Durant has played for four different franchises across his career and looks primed to add to this list this offseason.
The Suns seemingly gave some legitimate thought to moving Durant at the trade deadline amid their frustrating 36-46 season in which they missed the playoffs outright. These trade conversations are expected to pick up once again, with ESPN’s Shams Charania reporting the Suns will work with Durant and his business partner Rich Kleiman to help find the right destination for all parties. With the NBA Draft now three weeks away, talks will be heating up with several teams showing interest in the former MVP.
Even with Durant set to turn 37 years old, he continues to play at an incredibly high level. The four-time scoring champion is coming off a season in which he averaged 26.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game while shooting 43.0% from beyond the three-point arc.
DraftKings Sportsbook has established a market for Kevin Durant’s next team. This article will take a look at the most likely landing spots and where the best value on the board is for the future Hall of Famer.
Kevin Durant Landing Spots:
Houston Rockets (+225)
The Houston Rockets enter as the favorite to land Kevin Durant, and rightfully so. Houston made their return to the playoffs this season for the first time since 2019-20 as their young core begins to take the next step. They suffered a first-round loss at the hands of the Golden State Warriors, with the Rockets’ inability to execute offense in the half-court proving their biggest issue. Durant is an all-time great scorer who can still get a bucket at any given time. In addition, Houston is at the point where it needs to make some decisions on which parts of its young core are here to stay and who must be moved to allow its long-term key pieces to keep growing.
Even more important, the Rockets hold possession of some notable Suns draft capital. Houston has Phoenix’s first-round pick this year (10th overall), an unprotected 2027 first-round pick, and the right to swap their 2029 first-round pick with Phoenix. This is an advantage that no other team can match, and these picks have increased in value given the Suns’ uncertain future. This was a strategic move by Houston, with current Saint Bonneventure’s General Manager Adrian Wojnarowski making this clear back in his news-breaking days.
Plenty has changed for both of these teams since this 2024 trade and report. But the Rockets are ready to make a win-now move, and Durant looks to be clearly on the market. Houston feels the most likely destination for Durant to suit up next season.
San Antonio Spurs (+1000)
There may not be a more intriguing team heading into this offseason than the San Antonio Spurs. Victor Wembanyama followed up his Rookie of the Year honors last season by growing his production to 24.3 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and an NBA-best 3.8 blocks per game. He looked to be a lock for Defensive Player of the Year, with his DraftKings odds climbing to -2000 before he was shut down due to his blood clot issue. Stephon Castle followed in his footsteps by earning Rookie of the Year honors himself last season. San Antonio also climbed up to the second pick in the NBA Draft through the lottery and has a chance to add another key piece to their long-term puzzle, most likely Rutgers’ Dylan Harper. This is in addition to the 14th overall pick they also possess, which originally belonged to the Atlanta Hawks.
However, the Spurs also showed their hand at wanting to accelerate their win-now process by trading for De’Aaron Fox last season. If it had not been for Wembanyama’s early-season ending, the Spurs were in a great spot to make a playoff push. They have plenty of draft picks to offer and some intriguing young players, such as Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, and Jeremy Sochan, that could build out a nice baseline for a trade. San Antonio can put together a competitive offer, and one that Phoenix may prefer. But the question is if the Spurs want to speed up their timeline to this extent by adding the 17-year veteran.
Cleveland Cavaliers (+3000)
A dark-horse name that has not gotten enough buzz is the Cleveland Cavaliers. They are coming off a season in which they led the Eastern Conference from wire-to-wire and finished with a 64-18 record. Cleveland then swept the Miami Heat in the opening round of the playoffs with a 122-point combined margin of victory, setting an NBA record. Things then came to a halt when the Indiana Pacers sent them packing in five games in the second round. While the Pacers still deserve more respect than they are sometimes given for what a good basketball team they are, the context of how this loss went down is a chilling reality for the Cavaliers.
The postseason is a different beast, and the Cavaliers are built for the regular season. As Donovan Mitchell himself told reporters in his exit interview regarding next season, “We could go 82-0 and no one would care.”
The biggest hurdle is likely getting Durant to sign on to go to Cleveland, but the Cavaliers have some win-now pieces that should appeal to Phoenix. It feels the team has maxed out the guard duo of Mitchell and Darius Garland and the big man pairing of Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. All four are very talented players, but Cleveland must look at itself in the mirror concerning roster construction. The team desperately needs a legitimate wing option, and pairing Durant with Donovan Mitchell would make a scary playoff duo. They do not have as lengthy a list of draft picks, but Phoenix has expressed its desire to keep its focus on contending. At +3000 odds, this is considered a longshot for a reason. But the Cavaliers have fewer hurdles to face than plenty of the teams listed ahead of them. It is time for Cleveland to get creative, and it would be a disservice if they do not at least explore this option.
BEST BET: Houston Rockets +225
