Kevin Durant, Houston Rockets Not Rushing Contract Extension

While most people would agree a player of Durant's caliber is certainly worth a max extension, the Rockets may be reluctant to offer that type of money with several of their core players needing to get paid in the next few seasons.

Houston has already taken the liberty of extending Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Sengun, securing their backcourt for the future; however, Tari Eason and Amen Thompson are next in line if the Rockets plan on keeping this core four together for seasons to come.

ESPN's Tim MacMahon recently jumped on the Hoop Collective podcast to discuss Durant's future contract with the Rockets, as he believes not only is Houston not pushing a max deal, but Durant may not be looking to push for one either.

"The Rockets aren't gonna go all-in, by all appearances and by what I've heard, they're not going all-in on an extension for Kevin Durant," stated MacMahon. "Now, that doesn't mean it won't happen, but there've been rumblings KD's not gonna push for the full max. I don't know that the Rockets are going to put anything on the table that's close to the max."

Luckily for the Rockets franchise, their general manager, Rafael Stone, has earned a reputation as the NBA's best negotiator because of how well structured and planned out his deals are, whether it be young players or savvy veterans.

Sam Quinn from CBS Sports had high praise for the offseason that Stone has put together in his NBA Front Office rankings, where the Rockets came in at No. 4.

"Rafael Stone is the NBA's best negotiator. He not only convinced Alperen Sengunto to re-sign at a number below the max, but also to take less than the maximum allowable 8% raises. Dorian Finney-Smith was the second-best 3-and-D wing on the free-agent market. How did Stone convince him to take only two guaranteed seasons? Steven Adams is on a descending-salary contract. Jabari Smith's extension includes an immediate descent, meaning his salary doesn't actually increase until the fourth season of the deal. Clint Capela passed up chances to start so he could be Houston's third center at only slightly above taxpayer mid-level money. All it took for him to convince Fred VanVleet to give up $20 million this season was a player option for next season. This is contract sorcery."

With Stone's track record, Durant's extension will be within a two to three year frame with a $40 million per year range.

It'll certainly be a cut compared to the 36-year-old's previous deals as a max player, but for a team that is built and prepared to contend for an NBA title for the next few seasons, perhaps the aging forward will take less money to potentially win a title with the Houston Rockets.