NBA insider all but confirms one superstar will leave the Suns this summer

The Phoenix Suns have been one of the biggest disappointments in the NBA this season, and as such big changes are likely coming this summer. If they could somehow manage to get into the playoffs proper that might change - but given even a play-in spot looks beyond them right now - we don't have to seriously consider that at this point.

What direction owner Mat Ishbia is going to go is unclear - and even though he has said that Devin Booker won't be on the move - there are no guarantees in this league. He may like what he sees in the Eastern Conference and ask to join a young upstart, or else the franchise could be made an offer they can't refuse.

Kevin Durant looks like the first domino to fall this offseason.

That's according to ESPN's insider, Shams Charania, who was on the Pat McAfee show to talk about all things NBA. The Phoenix Suns came up, and he revealed that Durant's time in The Valley - again barring an unexpected miracle end to the campaign - is all but over. Just as interesting, Charania went so far as to claim player and team would work together to find a solution for everybody.

That is the way it goes with superstars in the league - and although Durant is 36-years-old - he is still one of the best pure scorers that we have. More than that, he sells out arenas and jerseys, and having him on your team does - in theory at least because this has not been true in Phoenix - give you a chance to win a championship.

Charania coming out with this information before the end of the regular season appears to be a way of getting fans familiar with what is going to go down this offseason. An ankle sprain means Durant is not even out there at the moment, and it may be that we've seen his last game in a Suns jersey after he went down versus the Houston Rockets.

Ironically Houston were one of the teams the Charania name-checked as a franchise with genuine interest in Durant, that goes back to the most recent trade deadline. The moves they made in acquiring some Suns' draft picks from the Brooklyn Nets also make a lot more sense when you consider they could give those picks back - plus some young players - in order to get Durant.

As things stand they barely use Cam Whitmore or Reed Sheppard, two lottery picks who have a ton of upside but just can't crack the rotation in Houston. Combine one or both of them with the aforementioned picks, and it is hard to see the Suns turning that package down.

Really though this is a sad way to announce the end of an era of basketball in Phoenix. Being broken by an insider on a show that isn't exactly known for basketball, gives you an idea of just how far the Suns have fallen this season. Then again - with stats such as these ones - it is not hard to see why change has to happen.