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The Phoenix Suns are looking to trade legendary forward Kevin Durant sooner rather than later, and according to a recent report, the Houston Rockets are one of his preferred landing spots. Despite that development, several insiders are skeptical about the Rockets prospects of swinging a move with the Suns for Durant.
Houston enjoyed a breakout 2024-25 campaign, as they earned the No. 2 seed in the crowded Western Conference, although they were eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in the first round of the playoffs. Heading into the offseason, the front office has been tasked with finding a way to bring in players who will help them make a deeper run next year. Durant would obviously fit the bill, but the Rockets front office isn't willing to sacrifice their long-term future in order to land him.
"Those familiar with Houston's thinking have long stressed that the Rockets are exceedingly reluctant to try to expedite their climb up the Western Conference ladder by surrendering meaningful trade assets for a player who will turn 37 in September. It's a long-held stance stemming from the fact that most of the Rockets' most important players are under 25," Jake Fischer wrote for The Stein Line.
Houston has had discussions with Phoenix about trading for Durant before, but they have been unwilling to break the bank in order to bring him to town. And unless something changes when it comes to that train of thought, it seems unlikely that they will outbid the other teams who are also in the market for Durant's services.
"The Rockets have largely been uninterested in breaking up their depth, even for a future Hall of Famer," Kelly Iko wrote for The Athletic. "Unless Houston's brass is suddenly enamored with the idea of parting ways with key core talents, it looks like they're fine with keeping the band together."
"Unless they've been bluffing for this past year or so, it has been made abundantly clear that they only want Durant if it doesn't cost them pivotal parts of their young core. I'd be pretty surprised if that's where he winds up," Sam Amick of The Athletic would later add.
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The Rockets have a plethora of assets that the Suns are interested in, which is why they have been so heavily linked to a move for Durant. However, Phoenix has always been the more interested team when it comes to swinging a deal here, and while Durant is open to getting dealt to Houston, their front office has made it clear they aren't going to blow up their team just to bring him to town.
With the Suns asking price being rather high, that makes a deal between these two teams seem fairly unlikely. Anything can happen in the NBA, though, and if they suddenly change their mind and decide to make an aggressive push for Durant, it'd be tough for any other team in the league to create a better trade package than theirs.
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