Does the Kevin Durant trade make Phoenix Suns favorites for NBA title? Exploring Suns' odds of landing a championship
Kevin Durant would make any NBA team solid if not great. Teaming up with Chris Paul, Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton in Phoenix makes the Suns legitimate title contenders.
Durant is currently out with a right MCL sprain. Before the unfortunate injury, he was putting up another MVP-level season. He averaged 29.7 points, on 55.9% shooting from the field, including 37.6% from behind the arc.
Kevin Durant:
13x All-Star
10x All-NBA
4x Scoring Champ
2x NBA Champ
2x Finals MVP
1x MVP
Four first-round picks. https://t.co/Cp2XZElA4u
KD is another lights out shooter who can ease the burden on Devin Booker to score. "CP3" will have a dream job running plays for two of the NBA's deadliest scoring machines.
In last season's embarrassing elimination at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks, the Phoenix Suns were outmatched when Devin Booker had an off-night. When "Book" couldn't get his shots to fall, the Suns completely disappeared in Game 7 in front of their fans.
Monty Williams' squad had the best record in the NBA last season, but was exposed in the playoffs. Except for Booker, Phoenix didn't have a consistent weapon to go to, particularly in crunch time.
Kevin Durant solves that problem and more. Durant's presence alone forces defenses to take him into account. Any pick-and-roll action involving the two-time NBA Finals MVP will be a pain to deal with.
Defenders solving a Durant-Paul two-man action or a Durant-Booker pick-and-roll will be in a quandary at all times. Only a few teams with the right personnel may have a consistent solution to solve the problems they present.
Kevin Durant makes the Phoenix Suns' starting five arguably the best in the NBA
Kevin Durant, Chris Paul, Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton are probably the best four-man group in the NBA. They have playmaking, shooting, defense and playoff experience, though the team could miss Mikal Bridges, who will be joining the Brooklyn Nets.
Torrey Craig, who could be inserted into the starting five to replace Bridges, would not be too bad. Craig is averaging 7.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 53 games. More importantly, he is shooting 40.9% from behind the arc, which will only make the Suns' starting unit deadlier from the perimeter.
Except for Deandre Ayton, Monty Williams' starters can be counted on to punish opponents from long range. The lineup offers a ton of space for Kevin Durant and Devin Booker to weave their magic.
Who's beating this lineup? 👀 https://t.co/sfzMzma5Bj
Durant, on most nights, is a walking mismatch. Having Booker alongside KD and allowing Chris Paul to run the plays will be a coach's dream.
Monty Williams' job will be to make sure the bench has enough juice to give the starters a breather.
However, when rotations are short, as is the case in any playoff series, the Phoenix Suns, with the addition of Durant, are going to be tough to beat.
Kevin Durant could change the team's title hopes. The Phoenix Suns were at least +1800 to win the 2023 championship. That figure is about to significantly change once oddsmakers adjust to the impact of Durant's trade to the Suns.
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