Bill Simmons Believes Kevin Durant to San Antonio Spurs Already Done

Kevin Durant has been linked to a move away from the Phoenix Suns for a few months now, and the latest news suggests it's all but done.

Bill Simmons Believes Kevin Durant to San Antonio Spurs Already Done

Kevin Durant, Victor Wembanyama (FS Image)

Kevin Durant has long been rumored to be on the move away from the Phoenix Suns this summer. The team is unsustainably expensive for owner Mat Ishbia to pay repeater luxury taxes for while missing the postseason. Durant made valiant efforts in the past two years to help them become contenders, but this roster is past salvaging. The Suns’ front office is looking to cut its losses and recoup its flexibility this year.

Moving Bradley Beal would be a tough ask, since the Suns would normally have had to attach picks. But they don’t have any tradeable picks for the foreseeable future, so the best they could do would be to try and compete. To do that, the best trade chip the team has is Kevin Durant. Though 36 and past his physical prime now, KD averaged 27 points per game last season – the highest ever by a 36-year-old.

Houston is one of the three top destinations discussed as Durant’s landing spots. The team landed the second seed and took Steph Curry and his Warriors to a seven-game dogfight in the playoffs. It has young talent, a mix of veteran experience and depth, and a head coach with proven credentials. They also have the Suns’ future picks, which Phoenix would be looking to regain control of in some way.

However, this may thwart any attempt by the Suns to land a reasonable asking price from Houston. The Rockets would like every drop of blood they can squeeze in a trade that they’ve already won. This means that the Suns are more likely to look elsewhere. The OKC Thunder are back in the Finals and favored to win it all without KD. Getting him back looks low on their priorities at the moment.

This leaves the San Antonio Spurs as the third, and now likeliest choice to get Durant. The Suns star reportedly already communicated his desire to move to veteran reporter John Gambodoro via a third party. Bill Simmons believes that Durant and the Suns’ front office may already have engineered the deal. Speaking to Ryen Russillo on his latest podcast episode, the founder of The Ringer said:

I wouldn’t be surprised if KD to the Spurs is done already and they just haven’t announced it. Basically, they’ve agreed on specifics, just announce it on the week of the draft. This goes back to the Giannis thing. I think they trade for KD because it just costs less. They’ll be able to be real competitive and maybe go a couple of rounds in the playoffs, but they’re also going to keep the No. 2 pick and do it that way, which is my prediction.

Victor Wembanyama, Kevin Durant and De’Aaron Fox make for an interesting Spurs team

Much like LeBron James as a youngster, Victor Wembanyama is already playing at a level that has accelerated the Spurs’ rebuilding timeline. The team has a No. 2 overall pick incoming from this year’s draft. If they can package some of their players, their no. 14 pick and future picks, they can land Durant and make a real run at the top of the Western Conference.

Durant proved last year that he’s still aging like fine wine. He averaged one of the league’s best defensive field goal percentages at around 41%. His own offensive true shooting percentage of 64% ranks up there with the most efficient outputs of his career.

Wembanyama, on the other hand, was en route to an All-NBA First Team selection and a DPOY win. The 21-year-old will soon be considered among the world’s best players, if he isn’t already. The Spurs can aim to make playoff noise during his rookie contract and worry about giving him sustainable rosters later.

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