Grade the Trade: Suns regain their future by trading superstar in blockbuster pitch
Details of a Kevin Durant blockbuster trade
The Houston Rockets have a roster packed with young prospects and expiring money, and on top of that own the No. 3 pick in this year's draft and have a bevy of future draft capital. That includes the Suns' own 2027 first-round pick and swaps in 2025 and 2029. There are a lot of different ways to build out a trade for Kevin Durant.
A couple of guardrails exist. The Phoenix Suns are well above the second tax apron, which means they are restricted in how they can execute trades. They cannot aggregate players in a deal, which means they can only send out one player per deal. Additionally, they cannot take back more money than they send out.
Phoenix has a desire to win right now, but trading Kevin Durant would recognize that roster retooling is necessary. They could try and thread the needle by adding win-now players and draft picks and then flipping those picks for veteran help, or they could invest in young prospects who can either grow into a new core around Devin Booker or be used in a trade at the deadline, next summer or beyond.
Here is one such trade construction that focuses more on the young talent than the win-now veterans:
Durant Rockets blockbuster
The Houston Rockets get their superstar centerpiece for their team and still have plenty left over to compete with him. A starting lineup of Fred VanVleet, Jae'Sean Tate, Dillon Brooks, Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun would have a lot of upside, and Amen Thompson and Tari Eason would still be coming in off the bench. The Rockets would have a small amount of flexibility to add another contributor or two.
It's a steep price to pay for Durant, and likely only makes sense if they truly expect to contend for a title right away. Kevin Durant played at a Top-10 level last season without question, and he will elevate the Rockets significantly. Is he worth giving up such a large haul?
The answer is probably yes, which turns the spotlight to the Phoenix Suns. Would they make this deal?