Kevin Durant does not have a no-trade clause in his current contract, but it sounds like he still had plenty of control over the process that led to him landing with the Houston Rockets.
The Phoenix Suns traded Durant to Houston on Sunday in exchange for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 overall pick in the upcoming NBA Draft and five second-round draft picks. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the Rockets were not always heavily invested in the Durant sweepstakes.
Windhorst said during Monday’s edition of “First Take” that the Rockets wound up making a push for Durant for two main reasons. One was that head coach Ime Udoka, who has a close relationship with Durant, asked the front office to make the trade. The other is that the price dropped so much from where it was at the trade deadline in February.
The reason the asking price came down is that Durant blocked trades to multiple teams, including the Golden State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves.
“The other thing was they couldn’t say no to the price,” Windhorst said. “The price was just so low they just couldn’t say no. … So, the Rockets had this happen because Kevin Durant controlled this process. Last winter, the Warriors were ready to trade for him. He said I don’t want to go there, and they backed off. Last week, the Timberwolves were on the verge of trading for him (and he said) I don’t want to go there.”
Brian Windhorst says Kevin Durant kept rejecting trades until the price got so low that the Rockets couldn't say no.
— Rob Kimbell (@RobKSports) June 23, 2025
Essentially both pushed his way to Houston and made sure they got him for pennies. pic.twitter.com/GBkEkk4MVx
Again, Durant does not have a no-trade clause. He still had plenty of leverage, however, as he is entering the final year of his contract. Most teams have no interest in giving up assets to acquire a disgruntled star who is unwilling to commit beyond one season, which was likely the case with the Timberwolves and Warriors.
Some will say the Rockets gave up too much for Durant since he will turn 37 in September, but he continued to play at a high level this season with 26.6 points per game. Houston also kept its two best young pieces in Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson while only giving up one first-round pick, which is No. 10 overall and not all that valuable.
Durant was reportedly only willing to sign an extension with the Rockets and two other teams. It sounds like he did a very effective job of steering his way to a preferred destination.
