Suns’ Kevin Durant Deemed Offseason Trade Target for Knicks

Getty Kevin Durant attempts a shot.

The New York Knicks have eight tradeable first-round picks, putting them in the mix to land a superstar this summer — possibly even Kevin Durant, whom Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley listed among the Knicks’ “most realistic trade targets.”

Durant, who has two years left on his four-year, $194 million contract with the Phoenix Suns, would give the Knicks a true second scorer to go along with star Jalen Brunson.

“Even at 35 years old, he basically remains a walking source of 30-plus points on impressive efficiency,” Buckley wrote on May 2. “Forcing opponents to have to worry about him and Jalen Brunson could be the key to routinely shredding their defenses.”

Heavy Sports’ Sean Deveney reported that an unnamed executive also said the Knicks were a “prime candidate” to land Durant, a high-profile acquisition for the Suns in 2023 who hasn’t paid the dividends the team expected.

The Suns — led by the Big Three of Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal — were swept out of the first round of the 2024 Western Conference playoffs, leading to speculation the Suns could blow up the team by unloading Durant or Booker.

How Kevin Durant Would Help the Knicks

In his 16th season, the 6-foot-11 Durant played at an elite level in 2023-24, averaging 27.1 points in 75 games, the most he’d played since the 2018-19 season. And his shooting percentages — 52.3% from the field and 41.3% from 3-point range — exceeded his career averages.

A 14-time All-Star, he is known for his ability to score. Dating back to his second season in 2008-09, Durant has scored at least 25.3 points per game. He’s also one of the top postseason scorers in the NBA, averaging 29.3 points in 170 career playoff games.

Being able to take the burden off Brunson when needed could open the rest of the offense as they’d have to focus on two of the best scorers in basketball.

Knicks Could ‘Make a Competitive Offer’

The Phoenix Suns sent four unprotected first-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets for Durant in February of 2023. The deal also included Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, and Jae Crowder.

It’s uncertain what his value would now be two seasons later, but the New York Knicks have the picks to “make a competitive offer,” Stephen Noh of Sporting News wrote.

“The Knicks have been positioning themselves to make a move for Donovan Mitchell. Could they pivot to Durant?

“New York doesn’t have cap space like these other teams, so they would have to trade away one of their bigger salaries like Julius Randle or Bojan Bogdanovic, along with a handful of their role players,” Noh wrote in an April 30 column exploring landing spots if the Suns move Durant. “They also have a lot of draft picks to make a competitive offer, including all of their own, the Mavs’ No. 24 pick in 2024, and three picks in 2025.”

Julius Randle and picks could intrigue the Suns as the Knicks would send them a three-time All-Star in Randle.

“If something trips up the Knicks this postseason, the lack of a true No. 2 scorer feels like it will be that something,” Buckley wrote. “Now, would a healthy Julius Randle change that? Perhaps, but then again his two playoff track record is spotty at best, so maybe he’d struggle to fill that void. Kevin Durant wouldn’t.”