Kevin Durant's former teammate calls out Suns superstar's underwhelming record ahead of imminent trade
Speculations about Kevin Durant's future have started two days after the Phoenix Suns ended their 2024-25 season in disappointment. In a campaign that started full of promise, the Suns limped to 1-9 down the stretch to lose their shot at the play-in tournament. Durant suffered a left ankle sprain late in March, a situation that hastened the Suns’ slide.
On “Gil’s Arena” on Monday, the crew dug into the Houston Rockets’ rumored interest in the former MVP. Nick Young, who played with Durant in Golden State, reacted:
“Everywhere KD been going it’s been f**king the whole team up. … If I go somewhere else and the same thing happen at some point, I gotta be the problem.”
After winning back-to-back championships with the Dubs and earning two NBA Finals MVPs, Kevin Durant left the team. Durant formed a new partnership with Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn before convincing James Harden to join them. Harden eventually forced his way out, followed by Irving, prompting Durant to follow suit.
In Durant’s almost two years in Phoenix, he helped the Suns to the 2023 and 2024 playoffs. They lost to the eventual champion Denver Nuggets in their first postseason with Durant before getting swept by Minnesota last year.
The Suns reportedly wanted to trade Kevin Durant before this year’s trade deadline to bring in Jimmy Butler. KD said during an episode of the Draymond Green Show in late February that he vetoed a reunion with the Warriors. Durant shut it down because he wanted to keep his commitment to the Suns.
The offseason likely tells a different story because Durant could play somewhere else when the 2025-26 campaign starts.
Kevin Durant’s playoffs with the Phoenix Suns eerily similar to last two postseasons with the Brooklyn Nets
Kevin Durant’s first postseason with the Brooklyn Nets ended with a classic 4-3 loss in the semifinals to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021. KD might have dragged the hobbled Nets to a series win, but his big toe infamously stepped over the 3-point line. Milwaukee went on to bag the championship while Brooklyn imploded.
The following year, the Nets were swept in four games by the Boston Celtics. KD did not seem like his usual self, prompting rumors that age had finally caught up with him.
Vintage Kevin Durant returned in the playoffs in 2023 with the Phoenix Suns. Behind KD and Devin Booker, they gave the Denver Nuggets, which also became the eventual champs, a tough fight before losing 4-2. The following year, the Suns could not break through in four games against the Minnesota Timberwolves.