While other NBA trade rumors are out there, the Kevin Durant trade talks cast a shadow over everything. It is the first domino to fall, just don’t expect any action until at least Monday (nobody is going to step on Game 7 of the NBA Finals and risk the wrath of the league). Still, let’s start there with this roundup of rumors.
Jrue Holiday part of multi-team Durant trade?
Kevin Durant is the biggest name on the trade market right now. Jrue Holiday might be second, but the Celtics need to trim their salary, and there are numerous reports suggesting that Holiday could be the player on the move. Could Durant and Holiday be part of one massive trade, not for each other but as the big salaries in a huge multi-team deal? Here is Zach Lowe from the Zach Lowe Show podcast:
“The focus, for me, is on Jrue Holiday. I think there are even — I’ve heard there have been at least very broad discussions of three-team Durant-related trades where Jrue Holiday is … moved somewhere.”
Holiday ended up in Boston — where he was a key part of their 2024 title run — because he was part of a massive deal, the Damian Lillard trade. Could something like that happen again? Just something to watch, although it’s a safe bet Holiday gets traded somewhere this offseason.
Durant has controlled his trade market
Durant has his list of preferred landing spots — Houston, San Antonio, and Miami — and to this point has done a good job controlling the market with that request. Durant has some leverage because he only has one year remaining on his contract ($54.7 million) and can refuse to sign an extension with a team, essentially making him a rental. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst laid it out well on Friday’s NBA Today (hat tip Real GM):
“His trade value is depressed because he’s limiting his market. He is effectively doing that. He made it very clear he wants to have agency on where he finishes his career. He is, by doing that, depressing the market and forcing himself to a certain spot. That has been very effective so far.”
The problem for the Suns is that those other teams know this. The Spurs are largely out of the running because they are not coming near the Suns’ asking price and are not upping their offer (reportedly based around Devin Vassell). As previously discussed here, the Rockets are patiently waiting for the market to come down on Durant and the Suns to take their Jabari Smith Jr.-based offer. And as for Miami…
Heat won’t put Ware in Durant trade
One sticking point in the Durant to Miami trade idea is that the Heat will not include 21-year-old center Kel’el Ware in the trade, report Marc Stein and Jake Fischer at The Stein Line.
Without Ware — and with Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo understandably unavailable as well — the Suns will require multiple first-round picks to make this deal work, as they won’t be thrilled with the players they are getting back. So far, these sides appear to be quite far apart on a deal, but talks are ongoing.
Suns want 2025 first-round pick
One of the things the Suns are seeking in return for a Kevin Durant trade is a high first-round pick, reports Mark Stein. That could include Toronto at No. 9 (more on them below), Houston at No. 10, San Antonio at No. 14 (although they seem unlikely to be a contender), Minnesota at No. 17, and Miami at No. 20. Whether any of those teams would include that pick remains a question mark.
Jakob Poeltl not available in Durant trade
The Toronto Raptors are on the outside looking in at this point in the Kevin Durant sweepstakes, but they remain interested and are still lurking around. It’s not one of the teams on Durant’s list of places he would sign an extension, but Toronto has been here and done that before, trading for Kawhi Leonard in 2018.
What would a Raptors trade for KD look like? It would not involve center Jakob Poeltl, reports Michael Grange of Sportsnet in Canada. Grange notes the Suns asked about Poeltl at the trade deadline and were shot down then. He also explains the entire situation well, including the Suns using the Raptors as leverage.
“[The Suns] are looking to recoup value after trading two quality starters, Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson, along with four unprotected first-round picks, for just over two seasons of Durant that yielded a second-round playoff exit, a first-round playoff exit, and no Play-In appearance this past season. If the Raptors are presented as having a strong offer waiting in the wings, perhaps one of Durant’s preferred suitors steps up with something richer, or a team like Minnesota — another team with interest that’s outside Durant’s list — sweetens the pot.”
The Raptors know they are being used for leverage and don’t want to play that game. Toronto, like everyone else, is looking at the East next season and seeing something relatively wide open — Indiana does not strike fear in the hearts of opponents — and wants to put together a team that has a chance of a deep playoff run. Poeltl will be part of that team.
Teams interested in Cody Martin
Interesting note: a lot of teams have shown interest in Phoenix’s Cody Martin, Marc Stein reports, adding that he may “very well factor into any direct or multi-team deal” for Kevin Durant. The 6’5″ wing averaged 6.8 points and 4.2 rebounds in 15 minutes a night off the bench for the Suns last season. Just something to monitor.
Wizards want to trade up in draft
One rumor flying around is that the Washington Wizards, with picks No. 6 and 18, are looking to package those and maybe a player to move up into the top five in the draft and get a point guard (reporting via Grant Afseth). Ideally that would be Dylan Harper, but the Wizards don’t have the juice to pry the No. 2 pick away from the Spurs. That has turned the focus to Jeremiah Fears.
The latest NBC Sports Mock Draft has Fears going to Utah at No. 5, and if Ace Bailey slips out of the top four — a real possibility — that makes it more likely that Fears goes higher. Can Washington find a deal to move up one spot and get Utah’s No. 5 pick? It’s something to watch.
