Though it has been widely predicted that the Phoenix Suns will trade veteran big man Kevin Durant this summer, NBA insider Shams Charania has reaffirmed that notion with a Monday report following the firing of Suns' head coach Mike Budenholzer. The Suns finished 11th in the West with a record of 36-46 in his one year at the helm.
In his piece on the firing, Charania mentioned how Budenholzer's exit is the first move in the team's "summer of change," which he said will also involve discussions around Durant and contract problem child Bradley Beal.
"This marks the first action in a summer of change coming to the Suns," Charania wrote. "Phoenix is expected to engage in trade conversations involving Durant and will have discussions on the future of Beal, according to sources. Multiple teams will seriously pursue Durant, who finished another stellar season, and the franchise is expected to work with Durant and his business partner and Boardroom CEO Rich Kleiman on the next landing spot for the future Hall of Famer."
Given Charania's level of intel (he was the first to break the Luka Doncic trade, after all), this is perhaps the strongest indication yet of a Durant exit. It's also interesting to hear the team plans to discuss Beal's future; somehow, the guard has a no-trade clause built into his extremely expensive contract, which proved a big roadblock for the Suns this year. Convincing him to re-work his agreement or move teams seems unlikely ... but worth a try. For what it's worth, the 31-year-old has two years and $111 million remaining on the deal. Durant, meanwhile, has one year left.
Overall, this is a club that does need to make some drastic changes; at least they had a winning record in 2022 and 2023. But alas, 2024 has not been as kind to them. And per Charania, a rebuild is coming.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Suns to Discuss Kevin Durant's Future in Post-Budenholzer 'Summer of Change'.
