ATL must be kicking themselves for going all in on Murray. They had KD targeted and bust their nut too soon on Murray.
There are so many teams that have really good packages for Durant and still preserve their chances for the Championship. Toronto, Boston, Phoenix (with help), Portland, New Orleans all have near all-stars talent and plenty of picks to give up. I think the Nets are lucky he is doing this now before he gets hurt again. They are going to get quite a haul.
Kevin Durant Has Suns As Preferred Team In Trade, Heat At No. 2 Kevin Durant appears to have the Phoenix Suns atop his wish list following his trade request from the Brooklyn Nets. "Phoenix is the place he wants to go, I feel reasonably confident of that," said Brian Windhorst on his podcast. "I think Miami is second. What I'm not confident over is that Phoenix is going to be able to give Brooklyn what they want. And I'm also not confident in what Brooklyn is going to prioritize." Tim Bontemps interjected that he expects Durant to end up with the Suns. "If you look at these trade, there's a nexus point between what the player wants and the team wants," said Bontemps. "Kevin Durant would like to play for the Suns. We can all agree on that. The Phoenix Suns also have a lot of stuff the Brooklyn Nets would want. They're not going to get Devin Booker in this trade, but they've got Mikal Bridges, they've got Deandre Ayton they can put in a sign-and-trade, and they have Cam Johnson." The Suns also control all of their own draft picks, which makes assembling a competitive trade offer for Durant easier.
a chance to play with an all-star shooting guard and CP3 in a warm climate...oh man if only he HAD THAT OPPORTUNITY IN HOUSTON AT ONE POINT
That's so ridiculous to me. How can you put this on KD when it's 100% all on Kyrie and Harden bailing on him and the team. Kyrie opted in but still wants out. What's left for KD to lead and why is it just erased that LeBron bailed on Cleveland, then Miami then Cleveland again and now talks of bailing on Lakers but it's with a positive tone? All he did was recruit better talent to help him and had the better eye to leave at the right time and do it all again elsewhere. If anything this is all on Kyrie destroying KD's path, with plans to go back and help LeBron in LA-a direct competitor to KD's legacy. Harden doesn't bail if Kyrie committed to actually giving a **** about playing basketball. Somehow i wouldn't doubt if LeBron and his snake team are directly behind this level of sabotage. KD had about as epic a series as he could have vs the eventual champs and nearly took them out himself. Tf else is he supposed to do? And saying this is why he isn't on LeBron's level brings it back to the same topic of yesterday. They're the same, it's just LeBrons been luckier in his team formations doing it for 2 historically winning franchises out of 3 otherwise LeBron would be the same guy everyone was saying couldn't get it done as the leader like his first stint in Cleveland before his brilliant PR campaign to force media narratives convinced everyone of the opposite when he is nothing more than a snake mercenary for hire who forms easy roads and forced KD's legacy to have to keep up. The same mass media pushing LeBron is the same pushing the KD hate narrative and it's no coincidence it was in direct conflict with his majesties legacy. I won't let some narrative erase that KD at his best made LeBron look hopeless and helpless because the truth is if you give KD reliable elite help that Bron has had the majority of his career, where he has to be defended on an island, there's no one that can stop him. Westbrook. Pre Harden both very young. Kyrie with zero ****s to give left and a mentally weak and physically declining Harden temporarily. That's all he has had outside of his GS time and he got VERY close to winning in OKC and Bkn, yet we hate him for getting 2 measly rings where he was easily the best player when Kobe had prime Shaq to coast with for 3 and LeBron has bought all 4 of his.
If KD wins a chip in Phx.... I would laugh my ass off at the idea of Barkley being bitter that KD was the one that got them the ring and not him. Bus driver ftw!
Not sure if sarcasm? LeBron was a UFA at the end of his first CLE stint, at the end of his MIA stint and at the end of his second CLE stint. LeBron has never bailed on a team. Durant was a UFA at the end of his OKC stint and at the end of his GSW stint. The only time Durant "bailed" on a team, is right now.
Kevin Durant Told Nets He Wanted 'Change Of Scenery' Kevin Durant reportedly told the Brooklyn Nets that he needed "a change of scenery." "I think what happened here in the last few months the combination of the acrimonious talks with Kyrie Irving and the Nets about his future, their unwillingness to commit long-term to him, his inability to find a long-term deal in a sign-and-trade in the marketplace," said Adrain Wojnarowski. "And the Warriors winning a championship played a factor in this. I think it exasperated Kevin Durant's frustration. I think the narrative that surrounded him that he dealt with in the aftermath of him leaving Golden State and then going on to win a title without him contrasted with what has gone on in Brooklyn over these last three years." Durant approached Joe Tsai directly with his trade request. "In the end, I think for Kevin Durant, essentially I'm told what he described to ownership yesterday when he asked for a trade was that he needed a change of scenery."
KD bailed on OKC and LBJ bailed on CLE. KD bailing on a team that went to the finals and nearly beat the 73 win Warriors to join the 73 win Warriors was awful. He's bailing on Brooklyn, but it also isn't the Brooklyn he signed up for.
Just because you have the contractual right to leave, doesn't mean you didn't bail. That is separate from quitting on a team like Harden ended up doing to force his way out.
This mindset is completely ridiculous. By that logic, no player should ever leave a team they were either drafted to or leave a team they signed with, once their contract is up, regardless of how untenable the situation gets. All for fear of being labeled as someone who "bailed" on their team. You're basically trying to poke holes in a players' freedom of choice by guilting them with this label. And that's just really weird.