The Phoenix Suns have pitched a Kevin Durant trade in multiple calls to the Rockets since the end of Houston’s playoff run, reports The Athletic’s Kelly Iko.
Phoenix has done so while attempting to regain its own 2025 first-round draft pick, which was sent to Brooklyn in the acquisition of Durant in 2023 and later redirected to Houston. It falls 10th in the draft at the end of June.
Iko adds that over the course of “several calls,” the Suns have “gradually lowered their asking price” and that the Rockets would be interested in pursuing a deal if it gets to a certain price. Still, there is apprehension about gutting a young roster for a 36-year-old who ended the year injured.
Separately, Iko adds that Houston is receiving other suitors for that No. 10 overall pick and open to trading the draft pick.
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Why do the Rockets make sense to partner with Suns in a Kevin Durant trade?
The Rockets have long been connected to a Durant move for several reasons.
For one, the team’s interest in him leaked last summer.
Houston also stands in rare ground of both holding a chest of young talent and picks, as well as fielding a competitive playoff team. The Rockets finished second in the Western Conference only to get snuffed out by the veteran Golden State Warriors in the first round of the playoffs.
Some of those future picks are formerly from the Suns: the No. 10 pick this year, an unprotected 2027 selection and a 2029 first-rounder that could go to Houston if it’s the more favorable in a swap. Reacquiring those would give Phoenix a little more direct control of its future.
The Rockets last summer were also linked to Devin Booker, but Iko and others have since reported that Houston’s interest has waned. The reality is a Booker deal would do more damage to the collection of roster talent than, say, trading for Durant.
The 36-year-old has been relatively healthy over the last two years for Phoenix.
Over 145 regular season contests since joining the Suns, he’s averaged 26.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game while shooting 53% overall and 43% from three.
Taking a risk on Durant from Houston’s end is also tied to what they already have. In the words of Arizona Sports’ Kellan Olson, Phoenix is the perfect trade partner for Houston in a Durant deal:
Here’s the bottom line with Houston and what should really be the topic of conversation: It’s not about the Rockets being interested in Durant. It’s about how the Rockets should be interested in reshaping their roster this summer, and how the Suns are the perfect team for Houston to trade with in order to do so cleanly.
Why? The Rockets have two young players with questionable value right now in Jalen Green and Jabari Smith Jr., who they can use as the core of the return for a top-10 player in the league.
…
The new deals of Green and Alperen Sengun kicking in next year are a bump of almost $50 million, already making Houston a tax team with its 12 salaries as is, per Spotrac. While Fred VanVleet’s player option could come with a reworked, cheaper extension instead, more new deals for former draft picks will be coming up.
Smith and Tari Eason would start coming into effect for the 2026-27 season, and then the big one will be for Amen Thompson in 2027-28.
The Rockets, and their pockets lined with assets, could also keep an eye on Giannis Antetokounmpo’s situation with the Milwaukee Bucks, but acquiring that MVP-caliber star more cleanly swipes their depth away.
Even since the season ended, reports like Iko’s have indicated the Rockets will be very careful when they go star hunting. A lowering price on Durant keeps a Suns deal within the realm of possibility.
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