THE KD CAROUSEL: RANKING THE MOST LIKELY DESTINATIONS

NBA / Basketball

Written by Eddie Huband

It’s been weeks now since Kevin Durant sent shockwaves through the NBA by requesting a trade out of Brooklyn. But things are moving slowly, with the offers reportedly coming in way lower than Nets GM Sean Marks and co. are looking for.

Now, things can change in a heartbeat in this league, and there are plenty of teams with assets to acquire the former MVP.

Source (Background Photo): AP

With that, let’s take a look at my top 5 most likely teams he’ll end up on when training camp starts as of right now.

(From 5 to1)

#5 Golden State Warriors

Potential proposal: F Jonathan Kuminga, C James Wiseman, F Andrew Wiggins, GSW 2026 1st Round Pick (Unprotected), GSW 2028 1st Round Pick (Unprotected)

I know, crazy right?

But Golden State has tons of assets they could throw together if they really wanted to. I mean, why the heck not? It worked in the past.

This feels like a longshot though mainly because the thought of Durant sucking up his pride and essentially admitting he shouldn't have ever left seems incredibly unlikely

Having said all that…the Warriors don’t give a you-know-what and will do whatever it takes to win championships at all times.

#4 Phoenix Suns

Potential proposal: C Deandre Ayton (Sign-and-Trade), F Mikal Bridges, PHX 2023 1st Round Pick (Unprotected), PHX 2025 1st Round Pick (Unprotected), PHX 2027 1st Round Pick (Unprotected)

One of his preferred destinations, Phoenix does have assets to move. Though the issue here is the main centerpiece of the deal would have to be Ayton, who’s a restricted free agent, so it would have to be either a sign and trade or more likely, a three-team deal with another team involved

I don’t even want to begin to think about how complicated it would be to get this deal done, especially since Ayton can sign a massive offer sheet with anyone he wants, which would put Phoenix on the clock.

Still, if he somehow ends up here, it seems like he’d stay

#3 Toronto Raptors

Potential proposal: F OG Anunoby, G Gary Trent Jr., F Precious Achiuwa TOR 2023 1st Round Pick (Unprotected), TOR 2025 1st Round Pick (Unprotected), TOR 2027 1st Round Pick (Top-4 Protected)

There are another couple of versions of this deal that could play out, most of them involving Pascal Siakam. Still, if Toronto could somehow pull it off while keeping Siakam and reigning rookie of the year Scottie Barnes, then perhaps it would be enticing enough of a roster for Durant to have an open mind for a year or two.

Despite what Chris Broussard thinks, I think Durant would at least give Toronto a chance if it really came down to it, mainly due to the respect he has for Nick Nurse and Masai Ujiri. Though that’s just my opinion, and maybe Toronto’s brass knows something we don’t and is too scared of giving too much up for a guy who would just turn around and ask out again.

Just because the gamble worked out with Kawhi Leonard doesn’t mean lightning will strike twice. Plus, back in 2018, that team was about to get completely blown up. This time, they have way more to lose by way of their future.

#2 Miami Heat

Potential proposal: F Duncan Robinson, G Tyler Herro, C Bam Adebayo MIA 2023 1st Round Pick (Unprotected), MIA 2027 1st Round Pick (Unprotected), MIA 2028 1st Round Pick (Swap, More Favorable to BKN), MIA 2029 1st Round Pick (Top-4 Protected)

Miami has a knack for getting things like this done, though like Phoenix there would need to be a third party in play here because the Nets aren’t allowed to have Ben Simmons and Bam Adebayo on the same roster to contract rule technicalities.

But this seems like the place he really truly wants to be, and that matters in these types of situations.. Durant would fit in perfectly with his good buddy Jimmy Butler and head coach Erik Spoelstra, and the hope would be Kyle Lowry would be able to reach back for one more run with monitored minutes during the regular season.

#1 Brooklyn Nets

…just don't trade him until the deadline

If you don’t love the offers you're getting, then why not wait this out until the mid-season when teams get increasingly desperate and can drive up the market.

The Rudy Gobert trade certainly set the bar high for a haul, and the Nets brain trust clearly is looking for something similar. But teams seem reluctant to mortgage their whole futures for a guy who might not want to be there. Yes, he’s under contract, but that, as we’ve seen a hundred times, means nothing anymore. If he wants out he’ll get his wish (hence the whole point of this entire fiasco in the first place).

Brooklyn also clearly doesn’t want to just lose an asset like KD in exchange for 50 cents on the dollar, so this is the most likely play for them at this point. It seems from recent reports that after initially ‘going dark, he’s since opened up a dialogue with GM Sean Marks and the team. We’ll see if that means they can convince him to play out the first half of the season to buy them time to get him where he wants to go.