We all know why Kevin Durant wanted to leave the Phoenix Suns last summer, and that is because it was not working for both sides as they failed massively to live up to expectations.
The Houston Rockets looking like his best chance at making one final deep playoff run, and the Suns granting the now 37-year-old his wish that one year in has already come off the rails.
Alperen Sengun named NBA’s most overrated player
Durant had a co-star in Devin Booker that he could never quite gel with, but he has an entirely new issue now with current teammate Alperen Sengun being named the NBA’s most overrated player in a recent poll of current players by The Athletic.
If anybody is going to know what it’s like to play against Sengun each night it is the other players in the league (of which 151 were polled), while he was an All-Star for the second time this season. But those “Baby Jokic” comparisons we used to hear have gone quiet in recent times.
There is no doubt Sengun is one of the premiere offensive big men in this league, and you could even make the case that the fit with Durant on that end makes sense. Defensively it is another story, even if Durant remains criminally underrated in that area.
But the Rockets proved in their Round 1 series loss to the Los Angeles Lakers that they are almost as far away from contention as the Suns. In fact you could make the case Phoenix would have put up more of a fight against the Lakers, even if that series did end up going six.
Durant has a real problem on his hands if he does remain in Houston beyond this summer however as none of his other teammates took a significant step forward in 2025-26 either. We all know how he supposedly feels about Jabari Smith Jr.
The stagnation of Amen Thompson is even more worrying that Sengun being seen as overrated. Reed Sheppard did not have a good series. At this point we can now say with confidence that the Suns were actually able to give Durant something that the Rockets don’t look like they ever game.
A co-star in Booker who was also comfortable being the guy and letting Durant age into being the second best player on his own team, a luxury LeBron James doesn’t have right now because of injury but which is the case when Luka Doncic is available for the Lakers.
Sengun was supposed to be that guy and more, a young superstar on the rise. Instead he’s viewed as the most overrated guy in the league, yet another trade this offseason would be fatal for Durant’s legacy which is already on life support. Suns really did win that trade after all.
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