Rockets will soon make a Kevin Durant realization Suns fans know well

The Phoenix Suns proved both at their media day recently and subsequent training camp ahead of the regular season that they have definitely turned the page on the Kevin Durant era. He was shown the respect he deserves by Devin Booker when he addressed the media for the first time, while Khaman Maluach mentioned KDs are among his favorite sneakers ever.

But this is a team that is moving forward with Dillon Brooks setting the tone defensively, and with 11 new players to try and fit together. Durant's start to life with the Houston Rockets hasn't gone brilliantly either, with point guard Fred VanVleet done for the season with a torn ACL. News which also impacts the Suns' future.

Rockets will soon realize Durant doesn't fix everything.

Houston should still rightly be viewed as one of the top teams in the Western Conference, but not having an elite point guard hurts their chances to win it all. Amen Thompson might get a shot at being the playmaker there, while Reed Sheppard's time surely has to be now or never. It is ironic that in Jalen Green - the main player they gave up to acquire Durant - they could have had a solution.

Really though all this VanVleet injury is going to do is highlight a painful reality that the Suns discovered over Durant's two plus seasons in The Valley. As amazing a player as he is, simply having him on your roster does not fix all of the other problems you may have. In the Suns' case it was a lack of depth and no quality center, and they tried to get Durant to plug both of those holes.

The lack of help meant he was expected to carry a massive offensive load each night - which he generally managed to do - but that is not enough when you're trying to contend. Durant was also used as a center in certain lineups, absolutely not the way you want to utilize a guy who is about to turn 37-years-old.

The Rockets are going to try and run more sets through Durant because of their lack of floor general, but that won't negate the fact VanVleet isn't around. They may have better two-way players than the Suns could have even dreamed of in Thompson and Alperen Sengun, but they also expect the superstar to close out every close postseason game they hope to be in.

Let's not forget that Durant wasn't always able to do that earlier in his career, so to expect it now would be foolish. This isn't taking shots at the future Hall of Famer either - he did all he could when in Phoenix to win it all and didn't have the help - but rather a warning to the Rockets that just because Durant is now in town, does not guarantee winning even one playoff series.