A good portion of the NBA offseason was focused on the Brooklyn Nets and the trade request that Kevin Durant made. The Nets have changed the power structure this offseason, no longer giving Durant and Kyrie Irving the same control they had when they joined the team in 2019. As a result, he wanted to leave.
Trade rumors dominated the headlines for weeks as Durant made his request hours before the free agency moratorium was set to begin on June 30th. The timing of that was far from the most outlandish thing that occurred.
Requesting a trade with a four-year extension set to kick in this season, is unprecedented. Players are signing lucrative deals and looking to get traded almost immediately now until they get to the spot they want to be.
Durant took his trade requests to another level. When talks were slow, he issued an ultimatum hoping it would speed things up. In a meeting with team personnel, he said it was either him staying or general manager Sean Marks and head coach Steve Nash.
That was not a demand the franchise was going to appease. Oddly enough, Nash is the head coach that Durant and Irving hand-picked to replace Kenny Atkinson.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns & Brooklyn Nets Updates
Alas, the Nets held out and ultimately they got exactly what they wanted. Durant and Irving are both committed to the team for the 2022-23 season, as Durant rescinded his trade request and opted to continue the partnership after another meeting with ownership and prominent people within the organization.
While most of the panel over at ESPN that took part in their survey believes that Durant will be with the Nets the day after the NBA Trade Deadline, there was one scout that believes otherwise. That scout still thinks that the Phoenix Suns will ultimately land Durant.
“I just don’t think teams are going to pay what the Nets are asking until Deandre Ayton can be moved, and then once he can, I think Phoenix is the team that had the most interest and the best pathway to get [Durant].”
Deandre Ayton was the centerpiece of a package that the Suns were trying to build, but that idea went out the window when he agreed to an offer sheet with the Indiana Pacers. The Suns would match that deal, but he is not eligible to be traded until January 15th as a result.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns & Brooklyn Nets Updates
That could be when we see trade talks pick back up between the teams, especially if either of the Suns or Nets falter during the season before that. However, based on how the Nets carried themselves during negotiations, it doesn’t feel like they ever actually planned to trade Durant at all.
