Much of the NBA is settling in for a long wait on hold before the Kevin Durant situation is resolved. But one league executive believes there could soon be a chance for clarity at least.
“What I’m hearing is that KD is going to meet with the owner this week,” the source told Heavy Sports. “He’s going to go directly to the owner, Joe Tsai, sometime this week. We’ll see how that works.”
Whether the intent of the meeting is to smooth over a relationship that suffered at least a hairline fracture when Durant, with four years left on his contract, asked to be traded is uncertain.
“I don’t know,” said the exec. “I have no idea what’s going to come of that meeting. There are some things that KD is unhappy about, and I’m not sure any of that gets fixed here. But maybe it does.”
Nets at a Stalemate in Durant trade Process
The Nets have certainly been engaging in trade talks at least since word emerged in late June that Durant wanted to be dealt. But Brooklyn has been seeking high quality talent and multiple first round draft picks for the 12-time All-Star and former league MVP, and no one has yet offered a package approaching that haul.
There was a recent report that the Nets had weeks ago turned down an offer of Jaylen Brown, Derrick White and a first round pick from the Celtics, but others have disputed to Heavy that such a proposal was ever truly on the table.
A personnel exec from another club expressed disappointment with the process.
“I think there’s some teams that aren’t very happy that when they talk to Brooklyn it gets in the papers,” he said. “That doesn’t help. I’ve talked with a couple of teams that are not happy with the rumors that creep out of there through all this. It’s not a good way to do business.”
Unless, perhaps, the Nets are trying to roil the waters in Boston and damage the relationship with Brown.
“That’s probably why they won’t get anything done and why they haven’t had any conversations for a while,” said a source. “I don’t think they are going to get anything done with Boston.”
First Step in Durant Returning?
Another official from the South suggested there may be little change after all in Brooklyn. When Kyrie Irving and the Nets were unable to reach an agreement on a contract extension, he opted in to the final year of his pact and made himself a prime candidate to be traded — if a reasonable deal could be found for a potential one-year rental whose baggage fills an entire cargo hold.
But if Brooklyn can’t get what it wants for Durant and Irving, it may be left to start the season with them in hopes that things work out on the floor or better trade offers emerge.
“My bet is they don’t trade either one of them,” said the latter source. “Maybe Kyrie. I don’t see them trading Durant, because they’re not going to get back what they should. And I wouldn’t trade him either. The hell with it. He signed the deal. The hell with it, right?
“I don’t see KD being a hard line guy, either. If they can’t get a deal done, he’s just going to say, ‘[Expletive] it,’ and he’ll play — and he’ll play hard like he always does. I know KD, and he’s not going to sit out or anything like that. He’s not that kind of guy. There’s no way. He’s not going to do anything like that.
“If Brooklyn wants to be good now, the fastest way to that is KD and Kyrie and (Ben) Simmons together playing well. With anything else, you’re pretty much scrambling this season and waiting for those draft picks to bring you something good down the line. No matter who you bring back in a trade now, he’s not going to be KD.”
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Kevin Durant to Meet With Nets Owner About Trade Demand