Kurtenbach: Kevin Durant’s trade request could be a real problem for the
Warriors
The Golden State Warriors have the best trade package for Kevin Durant,
but he won't be coming to San Francisco. Where he goes could prove
problematic, though.
>Golden State Warriors’ Kevin Durant (35) smiles while warming up
before playing the Phoenix Suns during their NBA game at the Oracle
Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, Feb. 12, 2018. (Jose Carlos
Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
>Golden State Warriors’ Kevin Durant (35) smiles while warming up
before playing the Phoenix Suns during their NBA game at the Oracle
Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, Feb. 12, 2018. (Jose Carlos
Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
By DIETER KURTENBACH | dkurtenbach@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News
Group
PUBLISHED: June 30, 2022 at 3:00 p.m. | UPDATED: June 30, 2022 at 5:29 p.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2022/06/30/kurtenbach-kevin-durants-trade-request-could-be-a-real-problem-for-the-warriors/

Let’s push the jokes and schadenfreude aside for a moment, Warriors
fans. There’s serious basketball business at hand.

Kevin Durant wants out of Brooklyn, per every major NBA news breaker.
And per ESPN, he requested a trade directly to the Nets’ owner. He’s
all-in on this trade request, and in this star-driven league, that means
it’s just a matter of time before he’s dealt.

This has been a possibility that had been developing for more than a
week now, and according to Yahoo, Durant has been explicit on where he
wants to go: The Phoenix Suns.

Yeah, I don’t think those jokes about Durant’s failed tenure with the
Nets will be as funny if he heads to one of the Warriors’ biggest
Western Conference rivals.

To be clear, the Nets do not have to trade Durant, who has four years
remaining on a contract extension he signed last year.

They also don’t have to trade him to where he wants to go.

But if he lands in Phoenix — or with any other Western Conference
contender, for that matter — that’s obviously a big problem for the
Warriors in their quest to repeat at champions.

There’s a million hypotheticals on how such a trade with the Suns would
go down — it might require a third of the league to be involved — but
Durant could give Phoenix exactly what they were lacking in last year’s
postseason: Someone who can handle double-teams and win any one-on-one
matchup.

For a team that made the NBA Finals two years ago and had the best
regular-season record last season, adding a player of Durant’s caliber
would only bolster their title chances and hinder the Dubs.

That’s scary stuff for the Warriors, who are the title favorites for
next season with both FanDuel and DraftKings, but who have ample
competition.

Now, the good news is that Durant is also reportedly interested in a
move to Miami.

Root for that, Dubs fans.

Root for any Eastern Conference team, because if it’s not the Suns, then
the Memphis Grizzlies could also make an exceptional trade offer for Durant.

Does Durant want to go to Memphis? Probably not, but that’s not the
Nets’ problem.

And the Grizzlies — who arguably gave the Warriors their toughest
challenge in this past postseason — would be even more formidable with
Durant.

It would also take the budding Warriors-Grizzlies rivalry to a new level.

Now, what about Durant to the Warriors? Jump the line, right?

Well, it’s certainly possible. There aren’t many teams that can present
a viable trade package to the Nets for Durant, but I argue that the
Warriors could provide the best package in the sport.

But I seriously doubt the Dubs would pull the trigger on it.

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Why? Because the Dubs have a two-timeline goal. They’re winning now, but
they want to keep winning in the future. Chase Center won’t fill itself
when Steph Curry and company’s era is over. Durant is part of that era.

The Suns, meanwhile, have never won a title. They rarely compete for a
title — they’ve only won the Western Conference three times in more than
50 years of existence. And their current title window is limited — tied
to 37-year-old Chris Paul.

There’s a conversation that other teams will need to have about the
long-term viability of Durant in a trade. He’s entering his 16th NBA
season and had a full Achilles tendon tear at age 30. He’s played 90
games in the last three years.

But that’s not a conversation the Suns need to have. Their time is now,
Durant is still one of the best players in the league today, and if they
can land him, he’d be a pain in the side of the Warriors next year and
beyond.