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It has become a norm for All-Star or superstar NBA players to get moved at either the offseason or the trade deadline. The trend is expected to continue during the 2024-25 NBA season, which will see its trade deadline on February 6, 2025.
In an ESPN article published on August 19, two insiders predicted that the Suns would trade their superstar player, Kevin Durant, ahead of the key 2025 date.
Other star players who received votes include Brandon Ingram, Zach LaVine, Trae Young, Jimmy Butler and Darius Garland.
If the two insiders are proven right, Durant would be moved ahead of an NBA trade deadline for the second time in three years, following his move from the Nets to the Suns at the 2023 deadline.
Durant arrived in Phoenix to a ton of expectations, especially with the team already boasting of a fellow superstar in Devin Booker. However, the team underperformed in his first two seasons with the franchise, suffering a second-round loss to the Nuggets in the 2023 playoffs and a first-round sweep against the Timberwolves a year later.
Suns Not a Title Contender?
To make matters worse, the Suns were not projected to fare much better entering the 2024-25 season, despite making roster upgrades by acquiring Tyus Jones and Monte Morris to bolster the point guard position.
ESPN predicted the Suns to win 46.5 games, which would make them the tied seventh seed in the Western Conference behind the Thunder (55.5), Timberwolves (52.5), Nuggets (52.5), Mavericks (50.5), Grizzlies (47.5) and Kings (46.5). Furthermore, the Suns were projected to contend with other teams such as the Pelicans (45.5) and Lakers (44.5) for a spot in the play-in tournament to qualify for the playoffs.
The Atheltic’s David Aldridge explained why the Suns’ acquisitions of Jones and Morris, or the hiring of coach Mike Budenholzer, do not solve their bigger-picture issues entering the 2024-25 season.
“Adding the two-time Coach of the Year in Budenholzer should get Phoenix better organized, but the Suns’ main challenge is keeping Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal on the floor,” Aldridge wrote on August 13. “They logged 862 minutes together last season [2023-24], which was just the sixth-highest amount of minutes among Phoenix three-man units. Even a small increase from the trio in time spent together could take the Suns from very good offensively (10th last season in offensive rating, 116.8) to elite.
“And elite is where championship-level teams do their work. But the Suns get solid marks for bolstering themselves at the point, with two of the best ever at protecting the rock in Jones (a ridiculous 7.35 assist-turnover ratio for the Wizards last season, the highest mark since individual turnovers were first tracked in 1977-78) and Morris (career 5.1 assist-turnover ratio).”
Are the Timberwolves A Good Fit?
If the Suns decide to pull the trigger on Durant at the NBA trade deadline, many analysts projected the Timberwolves to emerge as potential suitors.
The buzz of Durant potentially joining the Timberwolves was directly linked to his budding friendship with Anthony Edwards, and their chemistry playing for Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Furthermore, ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins predicted that Durant would eventually like to team up with Edwards before ending his illustrious NBA career. However, Perkins predicted the Durant-Edwards pairing to not become a reality until the 2025-26 season.
“After this NBA season [2024-25], we might see some things, some moving parts,” Perkins on the August 12 episode of “First Take” on ESPN. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we see a reunion with Steph Curry and KD or LeBron James and Steph actually making it happen, or we see Kevin Durant go to Minnesota with Anthony Edwards because we saw they had a signature handshake. Those relationships happen, man.”
The Timberwolves could hypothetically build a package for Durant around Karl-Anthony Towns and a slew of draft picks. The two teams’ performance in the 2024-25 season could ultimately determine the futures of Durant and Towns.
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