The Houston Rockets seem to be laying the groundwork to make a run at trading for Kevin Durant, but that does not mean the two-time NBA Finals MVP wants out of Phoenix.
On Tuesday, the Rockets completed a trade with the Brooklyn Nets that involved nothing but a swap of draft picks. As part of the deal, Houston acquired the rights to the Suns’ first-round picks in 2025, 2027 and 2029. Those picks had been sent to Brooklyn when Durant was traded to Phoenix last offseason.
While there were some other intricacies with Tuesday’s deal, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports that the Rockets’ goal is to trade for Durant. Houston believes they will be in a better position to do that if they can offer the Suns an opportunity to get the picks back that Phoenix gave up in the Durant trade.
Brian Windhorst said on “Get Up” Wednesday that the Rockets made their trade with Brooklyn as “bait to the Suns.” Though, Windhorst added that Durant has “not asked for a trade to Houston or anywhere else.”
“They didn’t do this in January. They didn’t do it next year at the lottery when they saw what the draft was. They did it now, for Phoenix Suns stuff now. … They are interested in tempting the Suns to try to trade them Kevin Durant now,” Windhorst said. “They don’t want to do this later. They want to put this on the table to see if the Suns will be tempted by it.”
"[The Houston Rockets] are interested in tempting the Suns to try to trade them Kevin Durant NOW."
—@WindhorstESPN says all eyes should be on the Rockets at tonight's draft 👀 pic.twitter.com/hsYlF1rXqH
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) June 26, 2024
Suns owner Mat Ishbia has said he wants to continue chasing a championship with the team’s current trio of Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal. Of course, that “Big Three” was swept in the first round of the playoffs this year.
It seems like the Suns are more likely to pursue another big star than they are to trade Durant, but the Rockets are reportedly determined to give Phoenix something to think about.
