Hornets division rival emerges as possible Kevin Durant trade destination

The Charlotte Hornets likely won't have any part in a Kevin Durant trade this summer, unless they are used as a third team to help facilitate a deal, but they still may be impacted by his inevitable move.

According to ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania, the Miami Heat are among the several teams who appear to be interested in swinging a deal for the 15-time All-Star.

"The Phoenix Suns and Kevin Durant’s business partner, Rich Kleiman, are sorting through trade options - with interested teams mainly featuring Houston, San Antonio, Minnesota, Miami, and New York," Charania said.

Durant will be entering his age-37 season, so while there's clearly more basketball behind him than there is in front of him, landing with the Miami Heat would make life all the more difficult for the Hornets. Pat Riley is always searching for ways to build an instant winner, and if they're able to land Durant, they're not doing it to just get back to the playoffs; they're going for it all.

A Durant-to-Miami trade may help the Heat for a few seasons, but the deal could shrink their pool of future assets. More importantly for Charlotte, it would make the 2027 first-round pick (lottery protected) they got in the deal for Terry Rozier not as shiny. Without KD and the other pieces they will pursue, the Hornets could get great value out of that Rozier trade if it conveys in 2028.

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