Is Kevin Durant Worth the Headache?

Kevin Durant is at the front of trade talks yet again. This seems to be the new normal in the latest offseason/NBA Finals NBA news, with the exception being when KD was with the Warriors and they were playing in the Finals. Let’s discuss.

My issue, this is becoming old for me. I love Kevin Durant. KD is one of my all time favorite players. He is one of the most efficient and excellent scorers the game has ever seen. I've been riding with him since he was drafted by the SuperSonics. He is a solid rebounder. He is a good enough defender when willing. He is long and uses that length exceptionally well. He is a surefire first ballot hall of fame player. But, since his second title with the Warriors, he has become this curmudgeon who doesn't seem happy with wherever he is playing basketball. He looked downright miserable when the Warriors won their second title after he signed with them. I have to assume he didn't care for the talk that the Warriors are Steph Curry's team. The bummer for him, that will always be true. Steph is going to go down as the greatest Warrior to play in the NBA when he hangs it up. He more than proved his worth when the Warriors won the title in 2022. Steph is a legend. KD isn't on his level in those regards. When he left Golden State he ended up in Brooklyn, as a perceived packaged deal with Kyrie Irving. Well, we all saw how that unfolded. When they played together they were an offensive juggernaut. And when they added James Harden, man oh man were they fun to watch. But, the pandemic happened and Irving wouldn't get vaccinated, KD was never really healthy and James Harden didn't like carrying the load of the team. Kyrie was traded, then Harden was traded. KD asked out, and when Brooklyn refused at first, KD went scorched Earth. He wanted the head coach and the GM gone. He wanted to make decisions for the team on his own. The Nets eventually relented, firing Steve Nash and then trading KD to Phoenix, his preferred destination. And it has not worked out there at all. The Suns have all but mortgaged their future, owning no real picks or young players for a long time, to build around KD and Devin Booker. They let Mikail Bridges and Cam Johnson go. They traded so many picks to acquire the likes of Bradley Beal. They let a young Deandre Ayton go in exchange for Jusuf Nurkic, who seems washed. The Suns are a mess, and I have to believe a lot of that is due to acquiring KD. But, since the Suns are a bad basketball team at the moment, as is his want and will, KD wants out again.

When looking at potential teams that could get him, I don't think I'd risk my team's future for an oft injured, very often angry 37 year old Kevin Durant. As malleable as he is, he is old, isn't on the court as much as he maybe should be and if he isn't the focal point of a team, I do not think he will be happy. The teams mentioned today that I saw were the Spurs, Rockets, Timberwolves and, apparently now the Pistons are trying to get involved. I would never trade for him if I were the Spurs. They need to build around Wemby and De'Aaron Fox. That is the future of that team, especially Wemby. They don't need touches taken away because KD wants to pour in 30 on any given night. And they'd have to give up too many good young players. No way I team him up with Anthony Edwards in Minnesota. He is firmly the alpha there. That is his team through and through. He is the face of the T'Wolves and there is no reason to rock the boat there at all. They'd also have to give up defense first guys, and that is their identity, with AE being a supernova on offense. The Rockets are building something fun and cool with their young core. Jalen Green, Alpernen Sengun, Amen Thompson and Jabari Smith Jr are the reason to watch that team. And they already have solid vets in Dillon Brooks and Fred VanVleet. They have no reason to part with the young guys unless they want to shed future money. But why would they do that when they earned the two seed in the West last year? That would be foolish. And the Pistons getting in on this makes the least sense to me. They are young, they play rough, they had their best season in two decades and they seem to be up and coming. There is no reason whatsoever to break up that core and take the ball out of Cade Cunningham's hands. That would be a very bad decision by their front office.

I think, as unfortunate as it may be for KD, he is going to have to stay in Phoenix or take a big, big step back in his usage if they trade. I also do not think Phoenix will get the haul they might expect if they do trade him. KD is 37. He is hurt a lot. He gets angry way too fast and speaks his mind. As much as I like him, and will always love his game, he is on the wrong end of his prime and the time to walk away is going to be here much sooner than any of us think. I'm interested to see how this all plays out though. I'll be watching closely. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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