Rumors continue to swirl around Kevin Durant, the mercurial superstar whose social media presence is matched only by his smooth jumper. There is no denying that any team in the league would love to have a Hall of Fame scorer still capable to pouring in points and making an all-around impact. The question is which teams can incentivize the Phoenix Suns enough to win the bidding war?
The LA Clippers should certainly toss their hat into the ring. They are good enough to think they can win in the present with Durant, and yet not good enough to think they can legitimately win the title as currently constructed.
It's almost certain that the Suns will demand Ivica Zubac be included in any trade package for Kevin Durant. They have a massive need at center, and Zubac is a high-impact two-way center who would be a perfect companion to a team built around Devin Booker.
Yet the Clippers will certainly be keen on keeping their All-Defense center, especially as he comes off a season that was close to deserving All-NBA attention. The dream for the Clippers would be to pair Durant with their core stars: James Harden, Kawhi Leonard and Zubac.
To accomplish that, however, the Clippers will need to build a trade package of matching salary that is heavily indexed to shooting guards. The Suns, of course, already have a shooting guard logjam with both Devin Booker and Bradley Beal on max contracts. If the Suns tried to go into next season with their four highest-paid players all playing the same position it would be the height of madness.
Enter a third team, someone who could offer a center to send to the Suns and is not afraid to take on talented players for positive value. The Brooklyn Nets could be the key to unlocking a 3-team blockbuster trade between the Suns and Clippers; let's take a closer look.
Building a 3-team trade for Kevin Durant
Kevin Durant makes $54.7 million next season, so any trade involving the former MVP is going to involve a lot of salary being moved around the league. If the Clippers want to retain their three best players, that necessitates Norman Powell being in the trade.
Powell makes $20.4 million in the final year of his deal, giving the Clippers a starting point. Then Bogdan Bogdanovic can be added in with his $16 million, plus defensive stoppers Derrick Jones Jr. and Kris Dunn, making $10 and $5.4 million, respectively. That gets the Clippers to $51.8 million in outgoing salary. If they add another small salary that could keep them from being hardcapped at the first tax apron.
The Nets can take on the decent contracts of Powell and Bogdanovic as positive assets to flip to another team, move on from Claxton, and absorb some salary to give the Suns relief. For their troubles, they would get a 2030 first from the Clippers and a 2031 first-round swap. The Suns, then get a 2032 first alongside Claxton, Derrick Jones Jr. and Kris Dunn.
Here is the deal in full:
Should the Clippers make this trade?
The Clippers would be making a significant bet with this trade, that their aging core of Kawhi Leonard and James Harden could handle another aging star to make a run in the next two seasons. They also would need to rebuild their depth around their core. Nic Batum would be their only remaining rotation player under contract after sending out everyone else in this deal.
Adding Durant, of course, would be a phenomenal boost to their offense. How teams purport to stop Kawhi Leonard and Durant is a complete mystery; do that while also staying in front of James Harden and keeping Ivica Zubac off the offensive glass? Good luck.
As with all things Clippers, their upside depends on the health of their stars. Can Leonard and Durant be healthy for a deep playoff run? If so, this team would be a legitimate title contender if they can find their way to the needed role players. Is Jordan Miller ready to step up? Can they bring back Amir Coffey? Are there any ring chasers willing to sign up, be they old friends like Chris Paul or undervalued free agents (like Dunn was last year)?
This is vertainly not an inexpensive trade, but it's one worth pursuing for the Clippers. If they could pull it off, suddenly next season transforms into a contest with championship stakes.