Kevin Durant is almost certainly going to play for a new team next season, and if he has his way, that team will reportedly be the Houston Rockets, Miami Heat or San Antonio Spurs. Of course, the Phoenix Suns are under no obligation to get him where he wants to go, and that could mean that Durant winds up on a team outside of that list.
On Monday, ESPN confirmed that possibility, reporting that the Suns have focused on negotiations with three teams: the Rockets, Heat and Minnesota Timberwolves. The Timberwolves are obviously not one of the three teams on that list. According to Shams Charania, “Durant has no desire to be in Minnesota with the Timberwolves.”
Sometimes, such a desire is enough to kill a trade. That happened at the deadline, when Phoenix nearly traded Durant to the Golden State Warriors before Durant himself squashed the deal. Rarely does it make sense for a team to invest significant assets into a player who doesn’t want to play for them.
But for a few reasons, it actually might make sense in Durant’s case. He’s currently on an expiring contract, and he would seemingly prefer to sign a two-year, $122 million extension with his new team upon getting dealt. However, that contract might include more risk than reward, as it would cover his age-38 and -39 seasons. That’s a scary contract for a player with as much of an injury history as Durant.
The Timberwolves would also presumably be trading players on long-term deals to get Durant. Candidates for such a deal include Rudy Gobert, who has three expensive years left on his contract, Julius Randle, who only has one but would likely need an extension himself, or Donte DiVincenzo, who has two seasons left on the mid-level deal he signed in New York in 2023. While they’d obviously trade for Durant hoping to keep him, getting him on an expiring contract could be a way to clear their books of older players beyond the season.
Minnesota has been among the most frequently cited Durant suitors since the deadline, and the fit makes sense. Durant played with Anthony Edwards on Team USA last summer, and Edwards idolized Durant growing up. The two of them would give the Timberwolves arguably the best scoring duo in the NBA right after a Western Conference finals loss in which Minnesota’s offense struggled mightily against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
But Minnesota has never been much of a draw for star players. It’s a small market, and a cold one. It also, like most states, has a state income tax. Neither Florida nor Texas does, which makes both states popular among highly paid athletes. The Timberwolves have made the Western Conference finals two years in a row, but Houston and San Antonio are ascending while Miami plays in the weaker Eastern Conference, so all four teams would give Durant a chance to win.
Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly is a well-known risk taker. He was widely criticized for trading a haul of draft picks to get Rudy Gobert in 2022, but that deal has made the Timberwolves perennial contenders. His 2024 decision to swap Karl-Anthony Towns for Randle, DiVincenzo and a first-round pick garnered mixed reviews, but Randle just had the best postseason of his career to date. If any executive was going to be willing to trade for Durant against his will, it would probably be Connelly.
Ultimately, though, the Suns are going to make the deal that makes the most sense for the Suns. Whether that’s Minnesota, Miami, Houston or a dark horse, Phoenix has no real incentive to cooperate with Durant. He can try to pressure teams not to trade for him through the media, but if those teams are willing to outbid the other suitors, the Suns won’t hesitate to send him just about anywhere.
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