Getty Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics and Kevin Durant of the Brooklyn Nets.
Despite it being a slow period of the NBA’s Offseason, but trade rumors remain in full force. At the start of this week, on July 25, Adrian Wojnarowski announced a new team emerging at the front of the Kevin Durant sweepstakes. The insider shared that the Brooklyn Nets and Boston Celtics have talked about a trade that included Jaylen Brown as the All-Star headlining the deal.
However, other NBA Insiders came out saying that while the report came out recently the trade talks between the Celtics and Nets were ‘weeks old.’ So the Kevin Durant sweepstakes look to remain with little traction. For weeks the Nets have been reported to be preparing for Durant to return to Brooklyn next season. However, Marc Stein, in his latest SubStack article, shared an update on the status of Durant’s trade request.
Kevin Durant Still ‘Seeking’ Trade Elsewhere
Stein, in his recent column, covered all of the recent updates in this NBA offseason, and he gave his updates on Durant in Brooklyn as well.
“For the supposedly slow portion of the offseason, there are several potential trade and signing scenarios that could spark up and move into #dealzone range at any moment before training camps open in late September.
Brooklyn’s Kevin Durant, as we seemingly discuss daily, is still said to be seeking a trade elsewhere. The Los Angeles Lakers still hope to find a route to acquiring Durant’s teammate Kyrie Irving,” Stein wrote.
With Durant still hoping for a trade out of Brooklyn, can a team come together with a deal good enough for Durant? The Nets have been reported to be looking for a historic deal in exchange for Durant, especially after the haul that the Utah Jazz got for Rudy Gobert. The Boston Celtics have been reported to be the closest because of their ability to include an All-Star in Jaylen Brown in the deal, and the Nets are reported to wanting Marcus Smart to be included in the deal.
Nets and Celtics Proposals
With the Celtics being the possible frontrunner in any deals with the Nets, let’s look at possible proposed deals.
“The Boston Celtics have offered a Jaylen Brown package to the Nets for Kevin Durant, which Brooklyn turned down and countered,” Shams Charania of The Athletic tweeted.
The counter that Charania mentioned involved having the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year in on the proposal.
“The Celtics offered Brown, guard Derrick White and a draft pick to the Nets for Durant, sources said. The proposal was rejected, and Brooklyn has asked Boston — in any proposal — to include Brown, Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart, draft picks, and potentially one more rotation player, those sources added,” Charania wrote.
The other rotation player could be Grant Williams or Payton Pritchard or others, but it could be the best proposal from the Celtics, and the best Brooklyn will get in a deal. If Durant is still looking to be traded and won’t rescind his request, they likely won’t find better than what the Celtics could offer.