Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia is making it known that superstar Kevin Durant is not available for trade. The Suns owner shot down speculation about the future of the franchise ahead of the NBA Draft starting Wednesday night, writing in part "Phoenix loves Kevin Durant and Kevin Durant loves Phoenix, and we are competing for a championship this year because we have the team to do it."
This comes after the Rockets traded for some valuable draft assets with the Brooklyn Nets late Tuesday night that was reportedly done with an eye towards trying to pry Durant away from the Suns. The Rockets gave the Nets back their 2026 first-round pick they sent to Houston in the deal they made for James Harden back in 2021, as well as relinquishing the rights for a pick swap of Brooklyn's first-round pick in 2025 from the same deal. In return, the Rockets got an unprotected 2027 first-round pick (via Suns), a 2029 first-round pick (via the more favorable of the Suns or Mavericks) and two pick swaps in 2025 and 2029.
It was a savvy move for Houston, which also still owns the third overall pick in Wednesday night's draft. And it was done with the intention of using their new stockpile of assets to trade for a star, like Durant, who they've been rumored to have interest in trading for this summer. As Ishbia firmly said on Twitter, the Suns have maintained that they're interested in competing for next season with Durant on the roster, but the Rockets have the unique position of offering the Suns the picks Phoenix sent to Brooklyn to acquire Durant in the first place.
From Phoenix's position, as much as they probably don't want to part with Durant right now, if the Rockets offer a haul for K.D., or even Devin Booker, can you really say no? While Durant's short tenure with the Suns hasn't gone to plan in part due to injuries, the fact remains that he and Booker haven't made it out the second round of the playoffs. And after trading for Bradley Beal last summer in an effort to create an offensively potent Big Three, the Suns struggled this season because of their lack of depth. That issue isn't going away next season as they're expected to be well over the luxury tax paying all three of their stars.
The Rockets could offer multiple firsts for Durant, and are at least toying with the idea of trading young rising star Alperen Sengun, per ESPN's Brian Windhorst. While trading Sengun seems surprising given the standout third season he had that was cut short due to an injury, Windhorst said that if Houston drafts someone like UConn center Donovan Clingan, who CBS Sports' own Gary Parrish has him mocked to go to the Rockets with the No. 3 pick, it could open the door for Sengun to be moved.
When Sengun missed the last 18 games of the season due to a Grade 3 ankle sprain, the Rockets immediately went on a nine-game winning streak and finished out the year with a 12-6 record and a legitimate push for the final play-in spot in the West. Perhaps Houston can rationalize that final push without Sengun as proof that they could play well without him.
If that's the Rockets thinking, and Sengun is available in a trade to the Suns in addition to additional draft assets, you at least have to listen to the offer. Sengun is only 21 years old, and has taken great strides in his development. He could be a core piece to a team gradually going through a rebuild. If there's any thought that the KD/Booker/Beal experiment isn't working, this could be the perfect escape plan for a Suns team whose roster is incredibly top-heavy in a Western Conference that isn't getting any easier.
And if it's not Durant, the Rockets can take their treasure trove of picks to someone else. They've been reported to have interest in other All-Star players like Jimmy Butler and Paul George. It's clear that Houston intends on making some sort of splashy move this offseason with the hopes of contending for a playoff spot next season, it's just a matter of which team takes the bait.
