Report: Raptors Unwilling to Include Key Piece in Potential Kevin Durant Trade

There are still a few darkhorse teams left in the running for Kevin Durant as anticipation continues to grow of when he will be traded ahead of the NBA Draft next Wednesday.

Durant has three preferred destinations in the San Antonio Spurs, Miami Heat and Houston Rockets, but the Minnesota Timberwolves and Toronto Raptors have still lurked around in rumors.

Durant holds a lot of power in where he goes, as he can deter teams from wanting to offer a good package for him given that he only has one year remaining on his contract and is eligible to sign a two-year extension this offseason but can pick and choose where he goes.

The Timberwolves make a lot of sense to still be involved in talks given the fact they can offer the Suns perhaps the best package, their recent success and having Anthony Edwards, who has long called Durant is favorite player.

However, Toronto has always been the one true wildcard, as the Raptors have only been to the playoffs one time after 2020 and would have a potential positional overlap if they acquired Durant with Brandon Ingram and Scottie Barnes.

Still, the Raptors have remained interested, but could be out of the running after a recent report by Sportsnet's Michael Grange.

Grange wrote Friday:

"The reports that the Raptors are monitoring his situation are credible and make sense, given Toronto had conversations with the Suns back in February about the possibility of a Durant trade.

"But to cut through some of the smoke: multiple sources have confirmed to me that Raptors centre Jakob Poeltl would not be part of any deal — however unlikely a Raptors-Suns deal might be — centred around Durant. The Suns were asking for Poeltl at the trade deadline and got a firm ‘no’ back then, but that hasn’t stopped them from asking, apparently.

"The best way to understand any mention of Poeltl being in a trade for Durant — or anyone else, but in this case with the Suns — is to recognize that Phoenix is trying to drive up the price. They are looking to recoup value after trading two quality starters, Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson, along with four unprotected first-round picks, for just over two seasons of Durant that yielded a second-round playoff exit, a first-round playoff exit, and no Play-In appearance this past season."

If the Suns were to trade Durant to Toronto, the rumored package was for Poeltl, one of RJ Barrett or Immanuel Quickley and the No. 9 overall pick.

Without Poeltl, however, it's hard to see the Suns wanting what Toronto would have to offer unless it included Ingram instead.

Phoenix has, by multiple reports, coveted a starting-caliber center in return for Durant, which Poeltl would provide and at a very high level.

Miami's Kel'el Ware and Minnesota's Rudy Gobert have been two other centers frequently mentioned in trade rumors surrounding Durant that Phoenix could target.

The Suns could also look to get a center from a third or fourth team, but if Poeltl is unavailable, this likely takes Toronto out of the picture for Durant.